Page 8 The Index - Arts & Entertainment
Arts & Entertainment
February 2012
Compendio Reviews the Academy Award Nominations for Best Picture Chris Compendio ‘12 Editor’s Note: This article was written prior to February 26, 2012.
movies, to the unsung heroes of film-making through the technical awards. After last year’s disastrous experiment of having actors James Franco and Anne Hathaway host the ceremony, the Academy is looking to play it safer with perennial host Billy Crystal, who took the job
Bridesmaids and a pleasant surprise in veteran actor Gary Oldman’s first nomination. On the other hand, snubs included Ryan Gosling, who starred in three critically acclaimed films in 2011 (The Ides of March, Drive, and Crazy, Stupid, Love); The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo for Best Picture; and the final Harry Potter film for any major categories. Another disappointment is the Best Original Song category, which only has two contenders, neither of which is notable or will be
performed in the ceremony. Looking at other significant awards shows this year, including the Golden Globes, the BAFTAs, and the SAGs, The Artist is expected to win big, as well as actors Jean Dujardin, Viola Davis, Christopher Plummer and Octavia Spencer. There have been few surprises in previous Oscar ceremonies, but still look forward to an interesting and hopefully more entertaining awards show. That being said, here are the nine nominees for Best Picture.
The 2011-2012 awards season ends February 26th when the 84th Academy Awards after original host Eddie Murphy dropped out. are presented. Hosted by eight-time host This year’s nominees come with surprises Billy Crystal, this year’s Oscar ceremony will and snubs, with an unexpected surprise from celebrate the best in film in 2011, from the big two nominations for the raunchy comedy blockbusters and the lesser-known obscure Midnight in Paris The Artist Written and directed by Woody Allen, this romantic This romantic drama set in Hollywood in the late 20’s/early 30’s is about comedy centers on a group of Americans visiting Paris. silent film actor George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) who’s career and life Gil Pender, a screenwriter (Owen Wilson), is engaged falls apart after the rise of sound films and the stock market crash. As a to be married, but his relationship with his fiancée goes tribute to the genre, the film itself is a silent film, presented in black and through a transformation during this trip as they find white and with almost no dialogue. The story is still comprehensible and that they have incompatible views on life. Charming, entertaining due to the leads’ powerful performances, making this one of clever, and taking advantage of what Paris has to offer, the more unique films of 2011. Having already won big in other awards this film is a classic Woody Allen film. However, while shows, The Artist is seen as the frontrunner for Best Picture this year. it is bound to win awards for its writing, this film is Other nominations: Best Director (Michel Hazanavicius), Best Actor unlikely to stand on top of the front runners for the Best (Jean Dujardin), Best Supporting Actress (Bérénice Bejo), Best Original Picture category. Screenplay (Hazanavicius), Best Original Score (Ludovic Bource), Best Other nominations: Best Director (Woody Allen), Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Film Original Screenplay (Allen), Best Art Direction Editing Rotten Tomatoes score: 93% Rotten Tomatoes score: 97% Chances?: Moderate Chances?: Very High The Descendants From the writer and director of the 2004 film Sideways is The Descendants, a comedy-drama about a father (George Clooney) trying to repair his relationships with his two daughters after his wife is put in a coma after an accident. He discovers that his wife was cheating on him and takes his daughters with him on a trip to find her lover. During this time, he looks back and reevaluates his life. Like Sideways, The Descendants looks on the unpredictability and complexities of everyday life using humor and its cast’s powerful performances. Having won a Golden Globe for Best Picture (Drama), this film still has a chance at taking the top prize. Other nominations: Best Director (Alexander Payne), Best Actor (George Clooney), Best Adapted Screenplay (Payne), Best Film Editing Rotten Tomatoes score: 89% Chances?: High The Tree of Life Probably the most complex and difficult Best Picture nominee to watch, this drama by Terrence Malick looks at the beginning and the meaning of life through the childhood memories from the 1950’s of a middle-aged man (Sean Penn) living in the present day. These flashbacks follow his relationship with his family, including his father (Brad Pitt). While many agree that the film is innovative and visually stunning, critics were divided over this film, being called “mad and magnificent” but also “self-absorbed” and “pretentious.” These polarized reactions make this nomination for Best Picture a surprise and is the reason that this film is unlikely to win. Other nominations: Best Director (Terrence Malick), Best Cinematography Rotten Tomatoes score: 84% Chances?: Low The Help Also based on a novel. The Help is about two AfricanAmerican maids (Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer) and a young white woman (Emma Stone) in the 1960’s as the three form an unlikely friendship. Taking place during the Civil Rights movement, the film follows the three as they start a secret writing project meant to detail the hardships that African-American maids go through in everyday life. While well-reviewed, the film is mostly thought to only be carried by its performances and will most likely only make a splash in the acting categories of the awards. Other nominations: Best Actress (Viola Davis), Best Supporting Actresses (Jessica Chastain, Octavia Spencer) Rotten Tomatoes score: 76% Chances?: Moderate
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close Based on the novel by Jonathan Safran Foer, this film follows a nine-year old boy (Thomas Horn) two years after his father (Tom Hanks) was killed in the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. As he tries to make sense of his father’s death, he searches for a lock that matches the key for a scavenger hunt his father left behind. Having received mixed to negative reviews from critics, being called overly sentimental, this nomination was seen as a surprise and is very unlikely to win over the other films nominated. Other nominations: Best Supporting Actor (Max von Sydow) Rotten Tomatoes score: 45% Chances?: Very Low War Horse Another film from a legendary director, Steven Spielberg, this film based on a novel and stage play of the same name. It takes place during the First World War and follows a young man who tames and builds a special friendship with his horse Joey. He and Joey are separated when Joey is sold to the cavalry, and the film mostly follows the horse as he touches the lives of various other people he encounters. Emotional and undeniably “Speilbergian,” War Horse received good reviews but was still thought by many critics and moviegoers to be too long and overly sentimental. This makes a Best Picture win unlikely. Other nominations: Best Original Score (John Williams), Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography Rotten Tomatoes score: 77% Chances?: Low Moneyball Based on a true story, this sports film tells the story of Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), the general manager of the Oakland Athletics, and his assistant Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) as they come up with a more analytical and unconventional method of finding players to assemble a team. With great performances from Pitt and Hill, and a script touched up by Aaron Sorkin (The West Wing, The Social Network), Moneyball is a sharp, fast-paced, funny, and well-acted film. It is a baseball film with little baseball and turns an unlikely subject into an entertaining film. But like Midnight in Paris, it is more likely to receive awards for its writing rather than in the major categories. Other nominations: Best Actor (Brad Pitt), Best Supporting Actor (Jonah Hill), Best Adapted Screenplay (Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin), Best Sound Mixing, Best Film Editing Rotten Tomatoes score: 94% Chances?: Moderate
Hugo Directed by legendary film director Martin Scorsese and based on the novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret, this family film is about a boy named Hugo who lives alone in a train station in 1930’s Paris, who is trying to repair a broken automaton that his deceased father left behind. On his adventure, Hugo encounters many colorful characters, including a toy store owner and his goddaughter. Like The Artist, Hugo acts as a tribute to the art of film-making but shows admiration for it rather than purely emulating it. Magical, emotional, and with a good use of 3D, this film was well received and could end up stealing the Best Picture win. Other nominations: Best Director (Martin Scorsese), Best Adapted Screenplay (John Logan), Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Film Editing, Best Visual Effects Rotten Tomatoes score: 93% Chances?: High