With the 2013 Academy Award nominations introduced, there are many question marks that follow many of the nominees as well as the ones who failed to make the cut. As an aspiring writer, I look at what the Oscars should be; but at the same time there’s that voice inside saying “How can there really be an award for something artistic?” When dealing with any form of art: music, literature, film, paintings, and so on… The product produced is meant to be a representation of an organically created concept, idea, and feeling. When you look at an industry like Hollywood there is going to be that share of snubs and surprises because everybody perceives art in their own way. Still it would be nice to see recognition given to those more deserving.
I’ll start with snubs of this year’s nominations; for the Best Picture category I am completely perplexed on how The Master, Django Unchained, and The Dark Knight Rises were not at least mentioned in the category. Sure there are too many films at times so each one can’t get the nod, but these three films were brilliant. Each one with an underlying theme that was deep and presented in a way that connects with the audience, bits of humor in each, and an exceptional story (after all, a movie is just a story on the big screen).
The Best Director category shunned a few of the expected front runners: Ben Affleck in his film Argo which hands down was one of the best films of the year, Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master was extremely artistic, beautifully shot, brilliantly acted, and alas, not a nominee. Quentin Tarantino assembled an amazing cast in Django Unchained; playing to each actor’s strengths, and finding the most entertaining way to tell a brutal story, another disappointment in recognition, along with Christopher Nolan directing The Dark Knight Rises, never before has a film based off of a comic book captivate the masses and be in the running as one of the films of the year.
There were many surprises in the nominations from all categories but the one that stands out the most I will paraphrase in two words: Bradley Cooper. This nomination was for Best Actor in a Leading Role; I hate to criticize any professional actor, especially one who has seen the success Mr. Cooper has but come on; this is the Academy Awards not the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards. Just because he finally had a role in a film where he had to show emotion in, doesn’t mean he was convincing. Since you won’t be taking the gold statue home Bradley, I’m pulling for you to win a Moon Man award at the MTV Movie Awards.
As a lover of film, writing, cinematography, a brilliant acting performance, and strong dialogue; I of course will have to watch the Academy Awards this year just to see the faces of all those brilliant minds that have done something profound this year. Now with 2013 upon us, I can start analyzing films for another year and see where they end up next awards season!
Complete list of 85th Annual Academy Award nominations announced Thursday:
1. Best Picture: “Amour,” `’Argo,” `’Beasts of the Southern Wild,” `’Django Unchained,” `’Les Miserables,” `’Life of Pi,” `’Lincoln,” `’Silver Linings Playbook,” `’Zero Dark Thirty.”
2. Actor: Bradley Cooper, “Silver Linings Playbook”; Daniel Day-Lewis, “Lincoln”; Hugh Jackman, “Les Miserables”; Joaquin Phoenix, “The Master”; Denzel Washington, “Flight.”
3. Actress: Jessica Chastain, “Zero Dark Thirty”; Jennifer Lawrence, “Silver Linings Playbook”; Emmanuelle Riva, “Amour”; Quvenzhane Wallis, “Beasts of the Southern Wild”; Naomi Watts, “The Impossible.”
4. Supporting Actor: Alan Arkin, “Argo”; Robert De Niro, “Silver Linings Playbook”; Philip Seymour Hoffman, “The Master”; Tommy Lee Jones, “Lincoln”; Christoph Waltz, “Django Unchained.”
5. Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, “The Master”; Sally Field, “Lincoln”; Anne Hathaway, “Les Miserables”; Helen Hunt, “The Sessions”; Jacki Weaver, “Silver Linings Playbook.”
6. Directing: Michael Haneke, “Amour”; Benh Zeitlin, “Beasts of the Southern Wild”; Ang Lee, “Life of Pi”; Steven Spielberg, “Lincoln”; David O. Russell, “Silver Linings Playbook.”
7. Foreign Language Film: “Amour,” Austria; “Kon-Tiki,” Norway; “No,” Chile; “A Royal Affair,” Denmark; “War Witch,” Canada.
8. Adapted Screenplay: Chris Terrio, “Argo”; Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin, “Beasts of the Southern Wild”; David Magee, “Life of Pi”; Tony Kushner, “Lincoln”; David O. Russell, “Silver Linings Playbook.”
9. Original Screenplay: Michael Haneke, “Amour”; Quentin Tarantino, “Django Unchained”; John Gatins, “Flight”; Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola, “Moonrise Kingdom”; Mark Boal, “Zero Dark Thirty.”
10. Animated Feature Film: “Brave”; “Frankenweenie”; “ParaNorman”; “The Pirates! Band of Misfits”; “Wreck-It Ralph.”
11. Production Design: “Anna Karenina,” `’The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” `’Les Miserables,” `’Life of Pi,” `’Lincoln.”
12. Cinematography: “Anna Karenina,” `’Django Unchained,” `’Life of Pi,” `’Lincoln,” `’Skyfall.”
13. Sound Mixing: “Argo,” `’Les Miserables,” `’Life of Pi,” `’Lincoln,” `’Skyfall.”
14. Sound Editing: “Argo,” `’Django Unchained,” `’Life of Pi,” `’Skyfall,” `’Zero Dark Thirty.”
15. Original Score: “Anna Karenina,” Dario Marianelli; “Argo,” Alexandre Desplat; “Life of Pi,” Mychael Danna; “Lincoln,” John Williams; “Skyfall,” Thomas Newman.
16. Original Song: “Before My Time” from “Chasing Ice,” J. Ralph; “Everybody Needs a Best Friend” from “Ted,” Walter Murphy and Seth MacFarlane; “Pi’s Lullaby” from “Life of Pi,” Mychael Danna and Bombay Jayashri; “Skyfall” from “Skyfall,” Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth; “Suddenly” from “Les Miserables,” Claude-Michel Schonberg, Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublil.
17. Costume: “Anna Karenina,” `’Les Miserables,” `’Lincoln,” `’Mirror Mirror,” `’Snow White and the Huntsman.”
18. Documentary Feature: “5 Broken Cameras,” `’The Gatekeepers,” `’How to Survive a Plague,” `’The Invisible War,” `’Searching for Sugar Man.”
19. Documentary (short subject): “Inocente,” `’Kings Point,” `’Mondays at Racine,” `’Open Heart,” `’Redemption.”
20. Film Editing: “Argo,” `’Life of Pi,” `’Lincoln,” `’Silver Linings Playbook,” `’Zero Dark Thirty.”
21. Makeup and Hairstyling: “Hitchcock,” `’The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” `’Les Miserables.”
22. Animated Short Film: “Adam and Dog,” `’Fresh Guacamole,” `’Head over Heels,” `’Maggie Simpson in `The Longest Daycare,’” “Paperman.”
23. Live Action Short Film: “Asad,” `’Buzkashi Boys,” `’Curfew,” `’Death of a Shadow (Dood van een Schaduw),” `’Henry.”
24. Visual Effects: “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” `’Life of Pi,” `’Marvel’s The Avengers,” `’Prometheus,” `’Snow White and the Huntsman.”
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