Finally we reach Best Picture, which is the most prestigious award of the night. This is the second year that the Academy has expanded Best Picture nominees to ten. I’m still split on this issue because now films that have snubbed by voters all these year can finally get some attention. For example nominees like Toy Story 3 and Inception would have never been nominated for Best Picture if this change hadn’t happened. However, it still doesn’t really mean anything in the end. There are always going a few films that truly have a shot at winning the big prize.
The films that absolutely have no chance in winning are The Kids Are All Right, Winter’s Bone, 127 Hours, Inception, and Toy Story 3. The Kids Are All Right is a comedy that has solid action and heart. It has a good mix of drama and comedy, but I do not think this is Oscar worthy at all. I really didn’t see what all the hype was about. Comedies rarely win at the Oscars and this wouldn’t be the comedy to win the award.
Winter’s Bone was the surprise nomination for Best Picture. It’s a well done independent drama film that won the top award at the Sundance Film Festival. It even got nominations for acting and writing. However, some voters thought The Town should have been nominated in place of this. That may put some voters off.
127 Hours seemed like excellent fodder for the academy. It’s a biopic about a rock climber who overcomes the odds to survive after his arm gets crushed in between a boulder. James Franco’s performance elevated this film and managed to get the best reviews of his career. So what went wrong here? It certainly wasn’t the reviews as they are at 93% positive on RT. The film’s director, Danny Boyle, did not get a directing nomination so this film. That is vital for a film to win, so 127 Hours is out of the picture.
Inception is a big summer blockbuster that actually engages the audience instead of throwing non stop explosions in your face. Along with great writing and directing from Christopher Nolan, it was one of the smartest blockbusters in a while. Unfortunately, this film did not get a directing or editing nomination, which really hurt its chances. Despite all of the support from the Christopher Nolan fanboys, the voters still don’t think this is an Oscar worthy film.
Some people have already stated that Toy Story 3 is the greatest animated movie of all time. That’s a really bold statement as it was great, but it wouldn’t even crack my top 10 list of the greatest animated films. It is still the best animated film of the year though. However, if this was the year for an animated film to win this wouldn’t be it. I thought Wall-E and Up were more deserving of the big prize. Plus it’s a sequel and the Academy rarely gives sequels Best Picture. Plus it has its own category, which is Best Animated Feature.
Black Swan was a powerful and beautiful film. The movie is anchored by Natalie Portman’s marvelous performance. The director of the film Darren Aronofsky has made an intense, passionate psychological thriller. The problem with the film is that the film may be too obscure for many voters and that alienates them from voting best Picture.
True Grit has been an amazing success as it is one of highest grossing westerns of all time and it gained ten nominations. Plus it was directed by The Coen brothers, who are worshiped by Academy voters. Plus the Coens didn’t do a conventional remake. They went based the remake more like the original book, which made the film grittier and edgy. Plus there are outstanding performances by Jeff Bridges and newcomer, Hailee Steinfeld. This seems like a best Picture winner to me. However, remakes are rarely rewarded and it was great, but is it really Oscar worthy? Plus the Coen Brothers already won best Picture for No Country for Old Men, which was no less than four years ago.
The Fighter is packed with powerful performances and it has plenty of heart. It’s predictable, but it could pull a surprise win just like Rocky did back in 1979. However, the film’s just not as good as the last two nominees and it has already peaked.
At this point the real competition is between The King’s Speech and The Social Network. For a long time it seemed like The Social Network would sweep the awards. It earned outstanding reviews for David Fincer’s flawless directing, Aaron Sorkin’s brilliant screenplay, and excellent performances from Jesse Eisenberg and Andrew Garfield. It’s a film that defines a generation and a film that has high replay value. It’s a modern classic and some call it a 21st century version of Citizen Kane. It swept so many critics awards and won the Golden Globe award for best Picture. However, something happened along the way and it stopped the momentum of the film. Despite coming out in October the film peaked by the end of the year. To add insult to injury it lost the DGA, PGA, and BAFTA to The King’s Speech.
The King’s Speech didn’t come out until December, but it gained momentum very quickly. The film has everything that the Academy loves. It’s a period piece dealing with historical figures. In the film King George, played by Colin Firth, has to overcome a debilitating stutter. Critics have called this Firth’s best performance along with other good performances by Helena Bonham carter and Geoffrey Rush. In addition, to all of that it robbed the social Network of the DGA, PGA, and BAFTA awards. Even the SAG got onboard. Once again, The Weinstein brothers have worked there magic with an effective ad campaign and excellent word of mouth. The only thing that can stop this film is The Social Network. There is also the slim chance of the King’s Speech and Social Network splitting votes, and The Fighter or True Grit could emerge as a dark horses. Nevertheless, this is highly unlikely. The Social Network was my favorite film of the year, but The King’s Speech pretty much has this wrapped up.
Well, that’s about it moviegoers. It has been a decent awards season, but not the greatest one. I still pulling for The Social Network to win the big one. The 83rd Academy Awards ceremony will take place on Sunday February 27th on ABC.
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