I have neglected this blog in these past few months for reasons out of my control (and some within it, truly), but I return to it on this most important day of the post-2012 movie offerings: Oscar night! I’ve been doing a lot of catch-up this past month, and here are the results of my observations.
Best Animated Feature
I’m aware that Brave won for Best Animated Picture at the Golden Globes, but Merida’s adventure is one of the more inconsequential Disney movie I have seen in a long time. It’s beautiful, and wonderfully appropriate for children, but there is no depth, nor originality to it. Hence my pick for the Oscars is Paranorman, a dreadfully neglected claymation feature, with a profound look at death, loneliness and marginality. I can’t recommend enough – but check out Pirates! Band of Misfits too. Hugh Grant at the Pirate Captain is lovely.
Original Screenplay
As I am writing, I have not seen either Amour or Zero Dark Thirty, both nominated in this category, as well as for Best Picture. Even if I had, though, I still would have picked Moonrise Kingdom, for the same reasons I chose Paranorman. It is original, delightful in its direction, with an excellent cast that convey a sharp, truthful look at loneliness and marginalization, with a hint of hope. Forget revenge, torture, addiction or the slow decay of the human body - Moonrise Kingdom is the worthy contender of the category.
Original Song
Through some terrible twist of fate – for the rest of the movie is excellent - Suddenly is the one song that I cannot bear in Les Misérables , the one song that is sung terribly by Hugh Jackman. My pick is Everybody Needs a Best Friend, but Skyfall is sure to win. And it’s a damn good song, too.
Best Actor
I have yet to see The Master, although I will before the ceremony starts, but I highly doubt that Joaquin Pheonix’s performance can match Daniel Day-Lewis’s in Lincoln. I regret this fact for Hugh Jackman’s sake, because he is very good in Les Misérables. But DDL is unbeatable this year. He is Lincoln, in all his glory and his flaws, and there will not be any better portrayal of this president for a long, long time.
Best Supporting Actor
Again, I have not seen The Master. But I’m picking Tommy Lee Jones anyway, for his portrayal of Thaddeus Stevens, who betrays his conviction for the sake of supporting Lincoln. The one look he gives Mary Lincoln’s servant, before he starts his speech, is all it took to convince me.
I’m also taking this opportunity to express my doubts about Christoph Waltz, who was excellent in Inglorious Basterds, but whose acting ticks are starting to frankly annoy me. You’re a quirky Austrian. We get it.
Best Supporting Actress
I’m going for Helen Hunt in The Sessions. Anne Hathaway is more likely to win, however, but Hunt definitely deserved her nomination, and The Sessions is a touching movie that more people should see.
Best Actress
I can’t call it. I haven’t seen Amour, I haven’t seen Zero Dark Thirty, I haven’t seen The Impossible, and Jennifer Lawrence left me cold. Quvenzhané Wallis was astounding for a 6-year-old, however. Nonetheless, I have a soft spot for Jessica Chastain, and although I will not be seeing Zero Dark Thirty, I hope she wins.
Best Director
I’m not calling this one either. I can spot extremely bad direction ( hey there, Catherine Hardwicke), but as long as the movie is okay, I can’t say. Steven Spielberg has a good shot, of course. Lincoln is magistral.
Adapted Screenplay
I have not seen Life of Pi, nor will I, because I despise Yann Martel. Having said that, I am picking Argo for this category, because…
Best Picture
…I can’t possibly pick it for this one, having just seen Lincoln. But I am going to keep following Ben Affleck’s career, because he is going somewhere. I was also pleasantly impressed by Les Misérables. Django Unchained was good, but its flaws are so apparent that it could not possibly win for this category, and nor should it.
I’m also very curious to see whether Oscar francophilia is going to award Best Picture to a foreign film for the second time in a row.
…and this is it.
