Thursday, February 19, 2009

It's That Time of Year Again...

I have made no secret about my displeasure at the Academy Award Nominations this year and my final picks include some necessary write-in votes. This is a year where what was pointedly left out is more significant than what made it to the dance, and the paltry selection is going to be a wound that only time itself will heal.

Before we begin, I want to take a moment to recognize those worthy souls that did not make the final cut:
Woody Allen, Vicky Christina Barcelona, Best Original Screenplay
Robert Siegel, The Wrestler, Best Original Screenplay
Justin Haythe, Revolutionary Road, Best Adapted Screenplay
Rosemarie DeWitt, Rachel Getting Married, Best Supporting Actress
Debra Winger, Rachel Getting Married, Best Supporting Actress
Misty Upham, Frozen River, Best Supporting Actress
Jonathan Demme, Rachel Getting Married, Best Director
Charlie Kaufman, Synecdoche, New York, Best Original Screenplay
Kristen Scott Thomas, I’ve Love You So Long, Best Actress
Bruce Springsteen, The Wrestler, Best Original Song

Love long and prosper on DVD and in the court of long-term memory.

The Picks

I've said it before, I always choose my winners with my heart rather than with my head, so, consequently, I never win the proverbial office pool. However, this year I am being pressed into service by the various media organizations I am a part of - ok, Carsten Knox's Love and Hate Movie Show on Halifax's CKDU radio (88.1 on the dial!) - to provide predictions and prognostications. Therefore, my picks are divided into 'Head' categories (those that will win) and 'Heart' categories (as opposed to those I want to win). Please do not make significant wagers based on the picks in this post. In this blog, as in Hollywood, nobody knows anything.

And on we go...

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
HEAD: Dustin Lance Black, Milk. I can live with this, but I felt Milk owes more to its performances than its writing, which is hampered by its standard biopic structure and clunky speechifying. However, Black provides us with an intimate look at a public man and weaves real life tidbits of Harvey deftly into the structure, like Harvey’s real-life assassination tape as a narration device.

HEART: My heart goes out to the most egregious snub in this category, Jenny Lumet’s Rachel Getting Married. The use of the wedding preparation as a narrative thrust was sly and the conversations and arguments were spot on. The whole movie had the urgency of a real wedding weekend.

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
HEAD: I’m going with Ben Button (Eric Roth), this could be its ‘major’ category reward, if Slumdog goes the distance.

HEART: The Dark Knight, Christopher and Jonathan Nolan. ‘Adapting’ doesn’t do them justice. The Nolans were inspired and are inspiring with their dense crime-thriller. It's work that honours their forebearers in two genres; the comic book movie and the crime-caper movie.

SUPPORTING ACTOR
HEAD/HEART: Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight. The Joker is a villain for the ages. He made me wonder what his history was as much as what he was going to do next.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
HEAD: Viola Davis, Doubt. I hear she’s brilliant. This is Doubt’s reward for the night.

HEART: Penelope Cruz, Vicky Christina Barcelona. Whether it’s a tragic depiction of mental illness or a comedic portrayal of a self-absorbed nutjob really depends on what scene you are watching. Cruz gets it because both interpretations are remarkably facets of the same person.

ACTOR
HEAD: Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler. How can they not? Rourke gave one of the best performances and has the best story of the year.

HEART: Richard Jenkins, The Visitor. The smallest gestures he made invested you wholly in his transformation throughout the movie.

ACTRESS
HEAD: Kate Winslet, The Reader. She’s earned it, like she’s earned it with every nomination, and The Reader is good enough.

HEART: Melissa Leo, Frozen River. I loved how Leo’s performance made you want Ray to do the right thing in the end as much as want what’s best for her and her family.

DIRECTOR/PICTURE
HEAD: Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire. Whatever.

HEART: Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight. Hollywood finally succeeds in making an artistically and commercially successful picture and they don’t reward it? Movies like these should be made EVERY DAY by Hollywood. When it comes time to reward their hard work, Hollywood deludes itself with the notion that ‘serious’ pictures, like Ben Button and The Reader, or uplifting pictures, like Slumdog, are what constitute ‘award worthy’ movies. Dark Knight is a serious achievement and should be celebrated as such.