Oscar Nomination Predictions

The Academy Award Nominations will be announced tomorrow. Because of that, I decided to make predictions in many of the categories. Below are my predictions for what the nominations will be, in order of likelihood, with a couple of possible upsets predicted in each category. I think these are what all of the nominees will be, but of course there will be some surprises that I simply don't see coming.

BEST PICTURE

The Artist

Hugo

The Descendants

Midnight in Paris

The Help

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

War Horse

Moneyball

Bridesmaids

The Ides of March

BEST DIRECTOR

Michel Hazanavicius-The Artist

Martin Scorsese-Hugo

Alexander Payne-The Descendants

Woody Allen-Midnight in Paris

David Fincher-The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Steven Spielberg-War Horse

BEST ACTOR

George Clooney-The Descendants

Jean Dujardin-The Artist

Brad Pitt-Moneyball

Michael Fassbender-Shame

Leonardo DiCaprio-J. Edgar

Gary Oldman-Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

BEST ACTRESS

Viola Davis-The Help

Meryl Streep-The Iron Lady

Michelle Williams-My Week With Marilyn

Tilda Swinton-We Need to Talk About Kevin

Rooney Mara-The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Glenn Close-Albert Nobbs

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Christopher Plummer-Beginners

Kenneth Branagh-My Week With Marilyn

Albert Brooks-Drive

Nick Nolte-Warrior

Jonah Hill-Moneyball

Armie Hammer-J. Edgar

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Octavia Spencer-The Help

Berenice Bejo-The Artist

Jessica Chastain-The Help

Janet McTeer-Albert Nobbs

Shailene Woodley-The Descendants

Melissa McCarthy-Bridesmaids

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

The Descendants

Moneyball

Hugo

The Help

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

War Horse

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Midnight in Paris

The Artist

Bridesmaids

Young Adult

50/50

Win Win

BEST ART DIRECTION

Hugo

The Artist

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

War Horse

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Captain America: The First Avenger

The Help

Anonymous

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

The Tree of Life

The Artist

Hugo

War Horse

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Drive

Moneyball

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Jane Eyre

The Artist

Hugo

My Week With Marilyn

Anonymous

The Help

The Iron Lady

Midnight in Paris

BEST FILM EDITING

The Artist

Hugo

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

War Horse

Moneyball

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

The Tree of Life

The Ides of March

BEST MAKEUP

The Iron Lady

Albert Nobbs

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

The Artist

Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life

Hugo

Anonymous

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

The Artist

War Horse

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Hugo

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

The Adventures of Tintin

The Help

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

Star Spangled Man-Captain America: The First Avenger

Pictures in my Head-The Muppets

Life's a Happy Song-The Muppets

The Living Proof-The Help

Lay Your Head Down-Albert Nobbs

Man or Muppet-The Muppets

Where the River Goes-Footloose

The Keeper-Machine Gun Preacher

BEST SOUND EDITING

Super 8

War Horse

The Adventures of Tintin

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol

Rango

Hugo

BEST SOUND MIXING

Hugo

Super 8

War Horse

The Adventures of Tintin

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Rango

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Rise of the Planet of theApes

Hugo

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

The Tree of Life

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Captain America: The First Avenger

X-Men: First Class

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Hugo and The Artist

One of the most interesting things about this year's Oscar race is that the two films most likely to win the award, The Artist and Hugo, are films that are so very similar, and yet, so different. They are films that tell different stories, in different ways, yet they both manage to get the same message across, a message that is especially important to film lovers like me.

The Artist is a silent film, made using very old techniques: black and white, title cards for dialogue, using music to show emotion. It tells the story of a silent film actor who finds the world around him changing as sound is introduced to film. The film manages to tell its story very well, without using any modern techniques, and is still an engaging and entertaining experience.

Hugo is a 3D film, made using all modern techniques and traits: color, sound, CGI and 3D. It tells the story of an orphan boy in France who gets drawn into a mystery that involves the beginning of film. This film uses all of these modern techniques to enhance its story and create an engaging and entertaining experience.

Both of these films show a love and appreciation for early films, as well as reflecting the constant changes that accompany the medium. They are also both brilliant films. They are fun and emotional and very well made. Individually, they are fun films that also make a statement about film in general.

However, taken together the two films have an even greater effect, they challenge a divide that has started to arise. There are many people that feel that film now is a shade of what it used to be, tainted by increasing technology. Others have been raised on films with these increases in technology, and have trouble going back and watching films that were unable to use these advancements, feeling like they're missing something.

Hugo and The Artist challenge both groups, and show that neither are right. Hugo shows that technological advancements aren't necessarily bringing film down, and they can actually be used to enhance a story and create a rich and unique experience. The Artist, on the other hand, shows that, when all of the bells and whistles of new technology are taken away, as long as there is a story and passion, a great film can always be made.

When put together, these films show the true versatility of the medium. The method of filmmaking is important, but there is no one method that leads to a great film. Filmmaking methods are paths through which the story can be delivered to an audience. A great film is determined by story and passion. The story and passion are the heart of film, beyond that, it's just about finding the right path through which to deliver it.

Best of the Year

This was a strange year for films. After a rather weak summer, which saw many good films but didn't have much that I considered to be truly great, fall more than made up for it. I already posted my Spearie awards, so those of you who looked at them already know what my number one pick is, but here I will not just be listing the films in order, I will be talking about just what it is I like so much about them. The ranking is purely for entertainment purposes, I don't expect everyone/anyone to completely agree with me, but I thought I'd take a moment to share my opinions.

Top 10 Movies of 2011

1. Drive

This was a very close year. There were several films that I considered to be my favorite at some point in time. However, looking back, Drive was very definitely my favorite. It has everything I'm looking for in a film. It is expertly crafted, very unique, and very entertaining. It is a film that I recommend one goes into without knowing too much about it. It is a unique film, the likes of which I have never seen before, nor do I expect to see again.

2. Hugo

This is a film that I felt very good coming out of. It is a brilliant experience for anyone who loves film. It has great performances and visuals throughout, and it is the film that truly made me realize the potential of 3D in film, a technique that I once thought to be an unnecessary fad, but now see can truly add to a film, if used correctly.

3. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

I enjoyed this film way more than I expected to. It's a very complicated film, which not everyone will be able to follow on their first viewing, but for those who can, it is a very worthwhile experience. The entire cast is at the top of their game, especially the underrated Gary Oldman as George Smiley, who, as always, sheds all of the other roles he's played and makes you believe that he IS George Smiley. Also a standout is Benedict Cumberbatch, who is quickly, and deservedly, coming up more into the mainstream thanks to his constantly great performances in BBC's "Sherlock" and films like this. This film may have the greatest cast of the year, as well as the most brilliantly written screenplay.

4. The Descendants

I have yet to see a film more perfectly balance drama and comedy than this film. It uses this balance to great effect, taking a very dramatic storyline; the death of a parent; and uses the comedy at exactly the right moments to keep the audience from getting too bogged down in grief. I recently dealt with a death in the family myself, and I kept flashing back to this film, and I realized how brilliantly the writers handled this kind of experience.

5. War Horse

This may be the most flawed film on this list. War Horse is by no means perfect, it is often old-fashioned to a fault. However, it is one of the most emotionally resonant films of the year. I was so involved with the characters and the story that I was very easily able to forgive the film its flaws. I understand why one may not enjoy this film, as it does not really belong in this day and age, but it shows that Spielberg still has talent left in him.

6. Hanna

This film is light on story and heavy on action. And that is fine by me. Hanna realizes that the audiences are interested in seeing action, so that is what it delivers. The story sets up the action, but otherwise lets it speak for itself. Mix the entertaining action sequences with the great performances, set to one of the greatest soundtracks in recent years and Hanna is a film that is much better than it truly should be.

7. Horrible Bosses

This, like Hanna, is a film that is great because it does exactly what it wants to do. Horrible Bosses intends to make its audience laugh, and it does a great job of that. What more is there to say?

8. The Tree of Life

This film truly is very difficult to place in this list. It defies rank and comparison to other films. It is just such a unique and intriguing experience. It is a flawed masterpiece. It is probably longer than it has to be, and certain moments don't seem to serve too much of a function, but the great moments of the film pack a truly powerful visual and emotional punch. It something that one has to be prepared for when going into it, because it truly such a different kind of experience.

9. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

It truly shows how great this year was for film that all of my top 9 films this year would be in the top 5 any other year. This film is perfectly crafted, and very entertaining. It's brutality is extreme, but I knew about that going in. This is a great mystery film for anyone who is able to stomach it, though I do not plan on watching it again anytime soon.

10. The Adventures of Tintin

This is one of the more entertaining films of the year. One might question the necessity of making the film completely animated, and I am not sure I can say that it was definitely better this way. However, it is a film that never stops moving, not allowing itself to become boring even for a second. It's a real throwback to a different era, and one that I couldn't welcome more.

TheWorst films of 2011

The Hangover Part II/Transformers: Dark of the Moon

These are not the films that I least enjoyed of the year, in fact, they each had moments that I did enjoy. I am calling these the worst films of the year because of what they mean for the film industry in general. These films were entirely unnecessary. They did not do anything new that their predecessors have not done before and they are entirely lazy. It makes me truly sad to see how frequently this is occurring, and that these films are making multiple times as much money as some of the truly great films that have been released. While I would probably say that Sucker Punch was worse than either of these films, I at least respect that it was trying to do something different, which, even though it pretty totally failed at that, is much more than the other two films can claim. I can only hope that people start to realize how lazy these films are and start to see films that actually have some effort put into them.

Spearie Award Winners

I originally had planned to do a two-part post later this weekend, which would include both the winners of the Spearie Awards, aswell as my best of 2011 lists. However, I will be away and possibly without internet this weekend, so I decided to split up this post, publishing the winners of my awards today, while the lists will be published on Tuesday.

So here they are, the winners of the Spearie Awards for 2011. The nominees can be found in the previous post. Again I welcome any and all comments and opinions and I would be interested to hear people's reactions.

BEST PICTURE

Drive

BEST DIRECTOR

Nicolas Winding Refn-Drive

BEST ACTOR

Ryan Gosling-Drive

BEST ACTRESS

Rooney Mara-The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Albert Brooks-Drive

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Jessica Chastain-The Tree of Life

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Horrible Bosses

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Hanna

BEST EDITING

Drive

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

The Tree of Life

BEST ART DIRECTION

Hugo

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Hugo

BEST MAKEUP

X-Men: First Class

BEST SOUND MIXING

The Adventures of Tintin

BEST SOUND EDITING

Captain America: The First Avenger

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Spearie Awards

So I started working on this blog back in August. I wrote four reviews, then just sort of stopped. This was the latest of several failed attempts to find a way to get my opinions out to the public. I have decided that this year, my New Year's Resolution is to keep up with running a movie review website. So I am going to start today by posting the nominees for my annual Spearie Awards, in which I pick the films that I felt were the greatest in several different areas. The nominees will be listed below, and feel free to leave any comments, whether you agree with my picks or not. Winners will be announced next week, along with my ranked top 10 movies of the year.

BEST PICTURE

The Descendants

Drive

Hanna

Horrible Bosses

Hugo

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

War Horse

BEST DIRECTOR

Tomas Alfredson-Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Terrence Malick-The Tree of Life

Nicolas Winding Refn-Drive

Martin Scorsese-Hugo

Steven Spielberg-War Horse

BEST ACTOR

George Clooney-The Descendants

Michael Fassbender-Shame

Ryan Gosling-Drive

Gary Oldman-Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Andy Serkis-Rise of the Planet of the Apes

BEST ACTRESS

Rose Byrne-Insidious

Rooney Mara-The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Elizabeth Olsen-Martha Marcy May Marlene

Saoirse Ronan-Hanna

Krisetn Wiig-Bridesmaids

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Albert Brooks-Drive

Benedict Cumberbatch-Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Charlie Day-Horrible Bosses

Ben Kingsley-Hugo

Brad Pitt-The Tree of Life

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Cate Blanchett-Hanna

Jessica Chastain-The Tree of Life

Melissa McCarthy-Bridesmaids

Carey Mulligan-Drive

Shailene Woodley-The Descendants

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Bridesmaids

Crazy Stupid Love

Horrible Bosses

Source Code

Win Win

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

The Descendants

Drive

Hugo

The Muppets

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Hanna

Insidious

War Horse

X-Men: First Class

BEST EDITING

Drive

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Hanna

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

War Horse

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Drive

Hugo

The Tree of Life

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

War Horse

BEST ART DIRECTION

Captain America: The First Avenger

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Hugo

Super 8

War Horse

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Captain America: The First Avenger

Hugo

Super 8

The Tree of Life

War Horse

BEST MAKEUP

Captain America: The First Avenger

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

X-Men: First Class

BEST SOUND MIXING

The Adventures of Tintin

Hanna

Super 8

The Tree of Life

War Horse

BEST SOUND EDITING

The Adventures of Tintin

Captain America: The First Avenger

Hanna

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

War Horse

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

The Adventures of Tintin

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Super 8

The Tree of Life