Hello!
Welcome back to the blog of randomness! Sorry I've been a little AWOL for the past week. was working on a pretty cool little short film called The Fourth Wall. Maybe I'll post a bit about it after this.
anyway You're here to see the actual post, not listen to a weirdo rant about randomness!
or maybe You are here for the randomness rants. who knows. anyway The Oscars are coming up, and for all you film junkies out there you'll know that the Oscars are the Super Bowl of the film world. the Dresses, the Gossip, the Drunken rich people! and the snooty stuck up atmosphere! oh, and the same 10 films nominated for everything.
Don't get me wrong, I love the Oscars. I enjoy them thoroughly every year, filling out the March madness style Brackets and picking my favorites. this year I figured I'd do the same. except this year I have a wonderful Blog to do it on! So, I'm gonna run down the list of nominees, and explain 1. who I want to win, and 2. who I think will actually win.
this is all just me speculating and I know I'll be wrong. (Lets face it, no one's seen the shorts) anyway, I've ordered the list by importance (to me) so you'll have to read through the boredom that is the shorts, Sound editing, and documentary features before you get to the good stuff. but, nevertheless, Enjoy!
First Category, Documentary shorts (double groan) this one's always just a huge shrug. no one's seen them. they're never all that interesting. I'm watching the trailers for all 5 and I'm already bored. Cavedigger's about a guy who makes custom caves. (so, basically Minecraft). Facing Fear is about two guys who fought off Neo-nazi's. Karama has no walls is about a tragedy in the middle east. The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life has a super long title and is about 109 year old pianist. and finally Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall, about an old prison inmate.
So overall, old people, strife in the middle yeast, neonazi's and minecraft. from the trailers alone I'm assuming Prison Terminal will win, but it's a toss up
- Projected Winner - Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall
I'll be honest, I generally like Short Animation nominees. (My spoon is too big) so this one's the most interesting of the 3 short categories, this year we have Feral (a young boy living in the wild coping with living in the city) looks interesting, reminds me of a script a guy at MPI wrote. Get a Horse! from Disney, apparently it's in front of frozen, and Disney's probably gonna buy the Oscar. Mr. Hublot is a cool looking Steampunk themed short. Possessions, an anime short about inanimate objects gaining souls looks amazing. and Room on the Broom. about a witch, and animals
I Instantly wanted to see Possessions and Mr. Hublot. Both look astounding. Whether the Academy will agree with me is another thing. I'll have to give my personal pick to Possessions. but the Academy will probably end up more with Get a horse and Disney's money or the art style of Feral.
I've seen the Disney short, besides some cool sight gags and some inventive little effects its nothing to write home about.
- Projected winner - Feral
(Personal pick - Possessions)
Last short category. another group I've never heard of. Off to find the trailers I go.
That wasn't me is about African soldiers, Oscar fodder. Just Before Losing Everything (holy shit that sounds depressing) is, about something. the trailer didn't really let me know, a mom needs to talk to someone who ignores her? uh, alright. that's a crappy trailer, moving on. Helium looks pretty cool, unique visuals and a potentially touching story. Do I Have to Take Care Of Everything looks like a Shameless clone, without Emmy Rossum. and Last, the Voorman Problem, starring Martin Freeman, Ding Ding, my new favorite.
Helium and Voorman Problem stand out as interesting. I like Martin Freeman so I have to give the win to him
- Projected Winner - The Voorman Problem
“Alone Yet Not Alone” from “Alone Yet Not Alone” Music by Bruce Broughton; Lyric by Dennis Spiegel
Best song. AKA, "we made a song so we get another Oscar also" this one's probably gonna end up with Disney, Let's face it. the rest better be amazing to potentially upset. Listening now.
Alone Yet Not Alone, is about Jesus, Pass. Happy is 1. from Despicable Twinkies 2, and 2. Pharell Williams. Skip. Let It Go, is Basically just Defying Gravity with snow Puns, It'll win, but it's basically the same as Wicked. The Moon Song is in the same Vein as Falling Slowly, a slow but heartfelt song, could upset but I doubt it. U2 probably already has an Oscar but they won't be taking one home this year.
Surprise, the Jesus song lost it's nomination
- Projected Winner - Let It Go, from Frozen
This Category I've actually seen all of the movies! and I can actually make a prediction based on that fact.
first off Lone ranger will not win because of the Critical Reception and Financial Failure. not to mention the Stiff Competition. Iron Man 3 was good, and gained lots of money, but it's effects were nothing we haven't seen before in previous Iron Man Movies. Same with Star Trek Into Darkness. It's very good visually but it's just building on what others have done.
the Real Battle here is the Effect of Smaug vs the realism and integration of Gravity. Smaug is an astounding character, much like Gollum before him. He's brilliant and can very well snag the best effect trophy, whereas Gravity is almost nonstop effects to the point of being seamless. the movie is phenomenal all the way around, so it'd be no surprise if it wins.
- Projected Winner -Gravity
One of my Least Favorite Categories. It's basically Disney saying 'come at me bro' every year. surprising Monster's university failed to get a nomination yet the Twinkies and The Croods got Noms. Personally I want The Wind Rises to win, and it being Miyazaki's final movie is a great benefit towards that, but Frozen will probably take it. Ernest and Celestine has had very little buzz but out of the 5 I'd say it's the Dark Horse and can sneak past with the win.
Frozen deserves the win. after seeing it I was extremely impressed. I'll find a copy of The Wind Rises so I can compare.
- Projected Winner - Frozen
(Personal Pick - The Wind Rises)
Uh oh, another group I haven't seen a single one from. Documentaries are my least favorite Genre, and I can admit, I actively avoid them (Blame John and Jane toll Free) that being said I've heard a whole lot of good things about both Act of Killing and Cutie and the boxer. I'd say it will end up with Act of Killing just because of the subject matter.
Projected Winner - The Act of Killing
Score is always tough. I've seen Saving Mr. Banks, Her and Gravity. I honestly don't remember any score standing out in Mr. Banks. Her had a very unique feel but isn't too powerful in the end. and Gravity was unbelievable, it shook the theatre and sounded amazing, but can it beat the sheer power of John Williams or Alexandre Desplat? I'm not sure.
- Projected Winner - Gravity
So the next two go hand in hand. Sound editing, and sound mixing. Very few people actually know the difference between the two. I honestly mix them up all the time but here are how they break down
Sound editing: The Creation and recording of sounds for the film, such as Dialogue recording, Foley Recording and basically creating any sounds you hear in a movie (besides the score) The sound designer creates all of the special effects (like Bullets whizzing by or Optimus prime transforming) and then hands them over to the sound Mixer
Sound Mixing: Basically the sound editor (confusing huh?) he takes all of the sounds previously recorded by the sound designers, Foley artists, and composers and assembles them into the final cut of the movie. He Mixes together the movie and ultimately decides when the music should get louder, or softer or disappear all together. the Sound mixers are extremely important and can make or break a movie.
that being said, this award is for sound editing (recording of sounds and creation of effects) I've seen 3 of them. and I have to say I'd be absolutely amazed if Gravity or Smaug didn't win. Gravity had so many unique and different sounds in it. and Smaug has an unbelievable amount of things in it we've never heard before. the others, Captain Phillips was amazingly well done, but wen you get down to it, a whole lot of it was just set in a small lifeboat. this particular one is more a Sound mixing job. I'd say the same for All is Lost, though I haven't seen it yet. and Lone survivor I'm sure is mostly military themed sounds that was just a day in the field recording guns then rerecording this that sound similar.
overall I think Gravity has the biggest and best chance to win.
- Projected Winner - Gravity
Okay, now for Sound Mixing. (basically editing of the sounds in the movie. I'll just call it Mixing...make it easier)
Again Gravity and Hobbit are unbelievably well put together. moving on. Captain Phillips was very well done, the claustrophobic feeling of the last half was very well done and the tension was kept up very well because of the music and calmness that was very unsettling throughout. I'm surprised to see llewyn Davis on here, but I guess it has music so it's not too surprising. I already mentioned lone Survivor last time. All in all I'm actually going to give the edge here to Captain Phillips or gravity. as much as I loved Hobbit.
- Projected Winner - Gravity
(Personal Pick - Captain Phillips)
First off, who did Disney Pay off to get Lone ranger another Nomination? I thought the movie tanked horribly? Oh well. Tonto had some unique makeup and I can see where they might win it for that but no-one else really had all that many original makeup jobs. I haven't seen Dallas Buyers club but it looks amazing. I'm not sure what is makeup and what is just the actors natural looks after all the Weight loss.
But let's be honest, the big elephant in the room is Bad Grandpa. I mean, Seriously? giving Jackass a nomination? I can fully see where the nomination is coming from but I hope to God they don't win. just making one guy look like an old guy (complete with old balls) is not a huge undertaking.
I actually think Lone ranger now has a pretty good shot. I woulda liked to see Hobbit with a nomination but as I've been reminded it was nominated last year, and will probably be up for it next year. Dallas Buyers club is the safe bet, just because it's the only movie that wasn't critically panned, but still, Lone ranger has some different looks going on.
- Projected winner - Lone Ranger
Crap, another one I've not seen any of. I had the option to see Broken Circle Breakdown at the film fest, but obviously I missed out.
This time I';m going to go a bit easier and side with the Golden Globes. they Picked Great Beauty, so I will to.
- Projected Winner - The Great Beauty
Again No Hobbit? Blasphemy!
Ok, that's out of my system. All of these are Period pieces. The academy loves to give this Oscar to period pieces.
American Hustle is the 70's, yeah It's a period piece but it's still not a huge way back. The costumes were good, all fit the part...and Amy Adams, well, yeah, I approve of her dresses, alot. Grandmaster is an odd pick, It's very well conceived and the costumes were really good, but it's not any different than other films out of china, the whole thing felt like it was made from other films. Great Gatsby is just another 1920's film. yeah it had different things here and there but it's the same we've seen. I haven't seen the Invisible Woman, but it has similar costumes to Elizabeth and other renaissance type movies.
And then there's 12 years a slave. it's a power house of almost everything. I'd be amazed if it doesn't take this hands down.
- Projected Winner - 12 Years a Slave
first off, I'm glad to see Wolf of Wallstreet isn't up for this. If you read my review you'd know I had major issue with it. anyway, I'm leaning towards Gravity on this one.
Hear me out. American hustle was edited just as well as any other movie. as was Captain Phillips. the editing was good but nothing out of the ordinary or special. Can't vouch for Dallas Buyers Club or 12 Years a slave, but I'm sure they're just as good.
Now take Gravity as an example. the Editing actually helps blend together some insanely difficult shots into long continuous shots and scenes, making you feel inside the movie. It's an amazing film.
- Projected Winner - Gravity
My Category! the Category I hope to someday win in!
this is one I actually feel rather strongly about. so I'll go into some more detail.
First off, this category is for Set Design mostly. It's awarded to Production designers and Set Decorators. first off I'm going to Take out Gravity. strictly because 95% of their Sets are Digital. not saying it doesn't have a chance, but because the other films have some pretty good set pieces and are period pieces, and in the future, on earth.
Next up is Her. I marvels at the Color and sets in her, yet I had a hard time differentiating the sets from the locations. that's probably a good sign. I loved the colors and the look of this movie. If you read my review you know i loved everything about it. the sets were great and the overall look was spot on. I would like to see this win, but it's going to be a touch race.
American Hustle captured the 70's well. never felt like anything was out of place nor did it feel too special. I've never really liked the 70's as a setting, the sets feel bland in all of them. American hustle just wasn't different enough to stand out to me in Production Design.
Great Gatsby. I really didn't like great Gatsby. It had some good visual flair I'll give it that but overall it feels like a lot of pomp and circumstance with no real reason. but from a production design standpoint it does a very good job of capturing the time and feel of the 20's.
12 years a slave will win. that's all I can say. It's a masterpiece. I think, I've still yet to see it but it's the farthest from our own time and the mood and setting is very different than our own. making it the logistical front runner in this category.
- Projected Winner - 12 Years a Slave
(Personal Pick - Her)
well, I'm prefacing 'Cinematography' with the fact that it's the Cinematographers job to design and choreograph every shot of the movie. whether it's all live action, or on a green screen stage. either way the Cinematographer has an extremely important job.
The grandmaster had a pretty cool look to it and had many beautiful shots, but in my show it was a bit too dark. I don't know if that's on purpose or not but I wasn't all that impressed with it. Inside llewyn Davis looks normal, nothing overly amazing. Nebraska gets the artsy addition of Black and White. and Prisoners was great all the way around.
But this category belongs with Gravity. The Camera brought you into the movie and never let you go. I know there was some backlash last year wit Life of Pi. but look at the visuals in that. they were amazing, screw you if you think CGI makes a cinematographer's work moot.
- Projected Winner - Gravity
The screenplay categories are usually a bit tough to categorize, I've seen the movies but I haven't read the scripts. Quite often the movies with Ingenious dialogue win (like, say Social Network) but lately there haven't been many Social network level dialogue out there.
To me Captain Phillips felt mostly improvised. I enjoyed the chemistry between the kidnappers and Tom Hanks, who really deserves a nomination, but it wasn't impactful enough for the Oscar.
I've harped on Wolf of Wallstreet quite a bit. and I genuinely liked the movie, but would I give it an Oscar for it's script? not really.
Didn't get around to seeing Before Midnight or Philomena. Wouldn't expect them to get much love this year.
But this year should go to 12 Years a Slave. this juggernaut should steamroll in almost every category.
- Projected winner - 12 Years a Slave
And now the better Script category. Yeah it still takes skill to adapt something, but to create a completely new story is something totally different.
I haven't seen Nebraska, but it looks like a good character driven drama. usual Oscar bait, but not the strongest this year.
Personally I think Dallas Buyers club is an actors movie, not so much a scriptwriter's movie.
American Hustle was 75% improvisation. It was good but the fact is, the script wasn't important while shooting so why would it be important at the Oscars?
Blue jasmine was fantastic, and Cate Blanchett read those lines with such amazing prowess that they leapt off the page. Could win it, but It came out so long ago I can't help but think it'll get buried in the voting.
Finally, Spike Jonze won the Golden Globe for his Her script, and he damn well deserved it. I loved her all around. I would be amazed if the Academy doesn't follow Suit
- Projected Winner - Her
Okay, final 6 Awards, Finally.
First off, As much as I like Scorsese, He doesn't deserve an Oscar for wolf of wallstreet. I'm sorry, the movie just wasn't as strong as it could have been.
To me this category is a battle between the Direction of actors n 12 years a slave, and the technical direction in Gravity. I loved Gravity from start to finish. it had astounding visuals and was pulse pounding all the way through. but can a basically one act space movie beat the drama of Slaves?
The Academy, in my opinion, pick higher brow pictures, so I'll hesitantly give Steve Mcqueen the nod for this one. the academy could surprise me, but I Doubt it.
- Projected Winner - Steve Mcqueen
(Personal Pick - Alfonso Cuaron)
I enjoy the acting categories, they're much easier to quantify then say, the sound categories.
I'm writing out June Squibb and Julia Roberts, could be amazing acting jobs, but no-one is talking about them. One thing that really helps collect votes is backers, like Sponsors in Hunger games. if no-ones talking about you, no one cares.
Sally Hawkins should be included in that list, but I've seen Blue Jasmine, she's good in it, but nothing astounding.
Now for the real duel, Lupita Nyong'o and Jennifer Lawrence. I've heard nothing but good things about Lupita in 12 years a Slave. to me Lupita has the same issue and Quvenzhané Wallis had a couple years ago. she seems amazing, but we've yet to see her in anything else. is it truly a great acting job if she just plays the same character every time?
This one will probably go to Jennifer Lawrence. She was a good character, but not quite far enough from some of her other characters to really convince me she deserves it.
- Projected Winner - Jennifer Lawrence
Another tight category. Let's break this down too.
Barkhad Abdi was brilliant as Muse. (his character's name was Muse?) But, just like Nyong'o in Supporting actress, We've never seen him in anything else. I seriously get the idea that he's just like that all the time.
Bradley Cooper was fine, besides the Jewfro he doesn't stand out much compared to other characters he's played. but he plays himself very well.
Michael Fassbender has gotten nothing but positive reviews as the Slave owner. It's very possible he gets the trophy, and he's established himself as a great enough actor to deserve a best actor win.
Why oh Why does Jonah hill get nominations? I mean, they give him fake teeth, and he gets a nomination. there's nothing here that warrants an acting nomination.
and Jared Leto, Holy Crap. this is one of the most amazing actor Transformations I've seen in a damn long time. I saw 30 Seconds to Mars in concert a few months ago, and I would have never connected Leto as the Transgendered person in this movie. They are two completely different looking people. completely unrecognizable. unlike Bradley Cooper and Jonah Hill, who just look like themselves, with different hair or different teeth.
- Projected Winner - Jared Leto
I called Best actress back in August. I saw Blue Jasmine and ever since I said that Cate Blanchett deserves an Oscar, hands down.
Meryl streep gets many Oscar noms, but August osage county is almost too obscure to win.
For all the nominations philomena has I just don't see it winning over the more powerful films. no matter how good judi Dench is in Philomena, the movie overall just doesn't carry enough weight.
Ok, I'll admit, I enjoyed Amy Adams in American hustle (it's the shirts, yeah) but was her acting job better than Blue Jasmine? no, no way in hell.
and finally the 'why exactly is she nominated?' nomination. I know what you're saying 'She carried gravity" no, the special effects carried that movie. Any actress could have played 90% of that role. She was good, but the movie was still a tour de force of the effects department and the actors take a back seat to them
- Projected Winner - Cate Blanchett
So actress was a bit of a landslide. Actor is a bit more balanced.
I'll cross off bruce Dern first, he's a fine actor but Nebraska, like Philomena is just the underdog in everything. I doubt itll get any love this year.
Moving on, Christian bale was good, and at times completely unrecognizable, the weight he gained for the role was great and it really shows his range as an actor. but is he going to win? I dont know. He's up against some stiff competition.
Matthew McConaughey won the Golden Globe. Color me amazed, he was not my pick at all. I also would have given him a nomination for Mud instead of Dallas Buyers Club. (I also think Phoenix deserves a win for Her) I'd not me surprised if McConaughey wins, but He's not my top pick.
Chiwetel Ejiofor is an extremely underrated actor. And he is amazing in 12 Years a Slave. He's definitely a front runner this year. Yay Operative!
and the Comedy actor winner at the golden globes. Dicaprio is a good actor. but he's very good at playing basically himself, over, and over. I just dont think he deserves a win for playing basically a character he's played multiple times.
- Projected Winner - Chiwetel Ejiofor
And the big one! If you made it this far, I congratulate you. somehow I didn't bore you too much. or you skipped ahead...that's more probable.
First off, the Longshots: Philomena, Nebraska, Captain Phillips. all are good, sure, but compared to the other movies they just don't have what it takes.
next up, the popular directors: Wolf of Wallstreet, American Hustle. While both are good, I can honestly say they won't win. I feel like they only got the huge amount of nominations because of the directors instead of the actual movies.
ok, the last ones are 12 Years a slave, Dallas Buyers Club, Gravity, and Her.
Well, Unfortunately I have to remove Her. I absolutely Loved it, and it's my personal Pick, but it has absolutely no buzz and Its against some very stiff opponents.
Next off is Dallas Buyers Club. basically, it's an actor movie. the actors will get awards, but it'll be forgotten in the final category.
The Real Battle is Between Gravity and 12 Years a Slave. Gravity is an amazing Visual Film. and 12 Years is all about the emotions and acting. two completely different sides of Filmmaking.
Projected Best Picture Winner - Gravity
(Personal Pick - Her)
So, there it is! after weeks of stalling, i finally finished it up!
I'll do a post Oscars wrap up, see how close I got.
Hey Tell you what. Check out this Printable Nominee List, Check how you do and let me know!
if you agree with this list let me know, I enjoy the feedback
Welcome back to the blog of randomness! Sorry I've been a little AWOL for the past week. was working on a pretty cool little short film called The Fourth Wall. Maybe I'll post a bit about it after this.
anyway You're here to see the actual post, not listen to a weirdo rant about randomness!
or maybe You are here for the randomness rants. who knows. anyway The Oscars are coming up, and for all you film junkies out there you'll know that the Oscars are the Super Bowl of the film world. the Dresses, the Gossip, the Drunken rich people! and the snooty stuck up atmosphere! oh, and the same 10 films nominated for everything.
Don't get me wrong, I love the Oscars. I enjoy them thoroughly every year, filling out the March madness style Brackets and picking my favorites. this year I figured I'd do the same. except this year I have a wonderful Blog to do it on! So, I'm gonna run down the list of nominees, and explain 1. who I want to win, and 2. who I think will actually win.
this is all just me speculating and I know I'll be wrong. (Lets face it, no one's seen the shorts) anyway, I've ordered the list by importance (to me) so you'll have to read through the boredom that is the shorts, Sound editing, and documentary features before you get to the good stuff. but, nevertheless, Enjoy!
2014 Oscar Predictions!
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
“CaveDigger” Jeffrey Karoff
“Facing Fear” Jason Cohen
“Karama Has No Walls” Sara Ishaq
“The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life” Malcolm Clarke and Nicholas Reed
“Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall” Edgar Barens
First Category, Documentary shorts (double groan) this one's always just a huge shrug. no one's seen them. they're never all that interesting. I'm watching the trailers for all 5 and I'm already bored. Cavedigger's about a guy who makes custom caves. (so, basically Minecraft). Facing Fear is about two guys who fought off Neo-nazi's. Karama has no walls is about a tragedy in the middle east. The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life has a super long title and is about 109 year old pianist. and finally Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall, about an old prison inmate.
So overall, old people, strife in the middle yeast, neonazi's and minecraft. from the trailers alone I'm assuming Prison Terminal will win, but it's a toss up
- Projected Winner - Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall
BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
“Feral” Daniel Sousa and Dan Golden
“Get a Horse!” Lauren MacMullan and Dorothy McKim
“Mr. Hublot” Laurent Witz and Alexandre Espigares
“Possessions” Shuhei Morita
“Room on the Broom” Max Lang and Jan Lachauer
I'll be honest, I generally like Short Animation nominees. (My spoon is too big) so this one's the most interesting of the 3 short categories, this year we have Feral (a young boy living in the wild coping with living in the city) looks interesting, reminds me of a script a guy at MPI wrote. Get a Horse! from Disney, apparently it's in front of frozen, and Disney's probably gonna buy the Oscar. Mr. Hublot is a cool looking Steampunk themed short. Possessions, an anime short about inanimate objects gaining souls looks amazing. and Room on the Broom. about a witch, and animals
I Instantly wanted to see Possessions and Mr. Hublot. Both look astounding. Whether the Academy will agree with me is another thing. I'll have to give my personal pick to Possessions. but the Academy will probably end up more with Get a horse and Disney's money or the art style of Feral.
I've seen the Disney short, besides some cool sight gags and some inventive little effects its nothing to write home about.
- Projected winner - Feral
(Personal pick - Possessions)
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
“Aquel No Era Yo (That Wasn’t Me)” Esteban Crespo
“Avant Que De Tout Perdre (Just before Losing Everything)” Xavier Legrand and Alexandre Gavras
“Helium” Anders Walter and Kim Magnusson
“Pitääkö Mun Kaikki Hoitaa? (Do I Have to Take Care of Everything?)” Selma Vilhunen and Kirsikka Saari
“The Voorman Problem” Mark Gill and Baldwin Li
Last short category. another group I've never heard of. Off to find the trailers I go.
That wasn't me is about African soldiers, Oscar fodder. Just Before Losing Everything (holy shit that sounds depressing) is, about something. the trailer didn't really let me know, a mom needs to talk to someone who ignores her? uh, alright. that's a crappy trailer, moving on. Helium looks pretty cool, unique visuals and a potentially touching story. Do I Have to Take Care Of Everything looks like a Shameless clone, without Emmy Rossum. and Last, the Voorman Problem, starring Martin Freeman, Ding Ding, my new favorite.
Helium and Voorman Problem stand out as interesting. I like Martin Freeman so I have to give the win to him
- Projected Winner - The Voorman Problem
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
“Happy” from “Despicable Me 2” Music and Lyric by Pharrell Williams
“Let It Go” from “Frozen” Music and Lyric by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez
“The Moon Song” from “Her” Music by Karen O; Lyric by Karen O and Spike Jonze
“Ordinary Love” from “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom” Music by Paul Hewson, Dave Evans, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen; Lyric by Paul Hewson
Best song. AKA, "we made a song so we get another Oscar also" this one's probably gonna end up with Disney, Let's face it. the rest better be amazing to potentially upset. Listening now.
Alone Yet Not Alone, is about Jesus, Pass. Happy is 1. from Despicable Twinkies 2, and 2. Pharell Williams. Skip. Let It Go, is Basically just Defying Gravity with snow Puns, It'll win, but it's basically the same as Wicked. The Moon Song is in the same Vein as Falling Slowly, a slow but heartfelt song, could upset but I doubt it. U2 probably already has an Oscar but they won't be taking one home this year.
Surprise, the Jesus song lost it's nomination
- Projected Winner - Let It Go, from Frozen
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
“Gravity” Tim Webber, Chris Lawrence, Dave Shirk and Neil Corbould
“The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton and Eric Reynolds
“Iron Man 3” Christopher Townsend, Guy Williams, Erik Nash and Dan Sudick
“The Lone Ranger” Tim Alexander, Gary Brozenich, Edson Williams and John Frazier
“Star Trek Into Darkness” Roger Guyett, Patrick Tubach, Ben Grossmann and Burt Dalton
This Category I've actually seen all of the movies! and I can actually make a prediction based on that fact.
first off Lone ranger will not win because of the Critical Reception and Financial Failure. not to mention the Stiff Competition. Iron Man 3 was good, and gained lots of money, but it's effects were nothing we haven't seen before in previous Iron Man Movies. Same with Star Trek Into Darkness. It's very good visually but it's just building on what others have done.
the Real Battle here is the Effect of Smaug vs the realism and integration of Gravity. Smaug is an astounding character, much like Gollum before him. He's brilliant and can very well snag the best effect trophy, whereas Gravity is almost nonstop effects to the point of being seamless. the movie is phenomenal all the way around, so it'd be no surprise if it wins.
- Projected Winner -Gravity
BEST ANIMATED FILM
“The Croods”
“Despicable Me 2”
“Ernest & Celestine”
“Frozen”
“The Wind Rises”
One of my Least Favorite Categories. It's basically Disney saying 'come at me bro' every year. surprising Monster's university failed to get a nomination yet the Twinkies and The Croods got Noms. Personally I want The Wind Rises to win, and it being Miyazaki's final movie is a great benefit towards that, but Frozen will probably take it. Ernest and Celestine has had very little buzz but out of the 5 I'd say it's the Dark Horse and can sneak past with the win.
Frozen deserves the win. after seeing it I was extremely impressed. I'll find a copy of The Wind Rises so I can compare.
- Projected Winner - Frozen
(Personal Pick - The Wind Rises)
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
“The Act of Killing”Joshua Oppenheimer and Signe Byrge Sørensen
“Cutie and the Boxer” Zachary Heinzerling and Lydia Dean Pilcher
“Dirty Wars” Richard Rowley and Jeremy Scahill
“The Square” Jehane Noujaim and Karim Amer
“20 Feet from Stardom” Nominees to be determined
Uh oh, another group I haven't seen a single one from. Documentaries are my least favorite Genre, and I can admit, I actively avoid them (Blame John and Jane toll Free) that being said I've heard a whole lot of good things about both Act of Killing and Cutie and the boxer. I'd say it will end up with Act of Killing just because of the subject matter.
Projected Winner - The Act of Killing
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
John Williams, “The Book Thief”
Steven Price, “Gravity”
William Butler and Owen Pallett, “Her”
Alexandre Desplat, “Philomena”
Thomas Newman, “Saving Mr. Banks”
Score is always tough. I've seen Saving Mr. Banks, Her and Gravity. I honestly don't remember any score standing out in Mr. Banks. Her had a very unique feel but isn't too powerful in the end. and Gravity was unbelievable, it shook the theatre and sounded amazing, but can it beat the sheer power of John Williams or Alexandre Desplat? I'm not sure.
- Projected Winner - Gravity
BEST SOUND EDITING
“All Is Lost” Steve Boeddeker and Richard Hymns
“Captain Phillips” Oliver Tarney
“Gravity” Glenn Freemantle
“The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” Brent Burge
“Lone Survivor” Wylie Stateman
So the next two go hand in hand. Sound editing, and sound mixing. Very few people actually know the difference between the two. I honestly mix them up all the time but here are how they break down
Sound editing: The Creation and recording of sounds for the film, such as Dialogue recording, Foley Recording and basically creating any sounds you hear in a movie (besides the score) The sound designer creates all of the special effects (like Bullets whizzing by or Optimus prime transforming) and then hands them over to the sound Mixer
Sound Mixing: Basically the sound editor (confusing huh?) he takes all of the sounds previously recorded by the sound designers, Foley artists, and composers and assembles them into the final cut of the movie. He Mixes together the movie and ultimately decides when the music should get louder, or softer or disappear all together. the Sound mixers are extremely important and can make or break a movie.
that being said, this award is for sound editing (recording of sounds and creation of effects) I've seen 3 of them. and I have to say I'd be absolutely amazed if Gravity or Smaug didn't win. Gravity had so many unique and different sounds in it. and Smaug has an unbelievable amount of things in it we've never heard before. the others, Captain Phillips was amazingly well done, but wen you get down to it, a whole lot of it was just set in a small lifeboat. this particular one is more a Sound mixing job. I'd say the same for All is Lost, though I haven't seen it yet. and Lone survivor I'm sure is mostly military themed sounds that was just a day in the field recording guns then rerecording this that sound similar.
overall I think Gravity has the biggest and best chance to win.
- Projected Winner - Gravity
BEST SOUND MIXING
“Captain Phillips” Chris Burdon, Mark Taylor, Mike Prestwood Smith and Chris Munro
“Gravity” Skip Lievsay, Niv Adiri, Christopher Benstead and Chris Munro
“The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” Christopher Boyes, Michael Hedges, Michael Semanick and Tony Johnson
“Inside Llewyn Davis” Skip Lievsay, Greg Orloff and Peter F. Kurland
“Lone Survivor” Andy Koyama, Beau Borders and David Brownlow
Again Gravity and Hobbit are unbelievably well put together. moving on. Captain Phillips was very well done, the claustrophobic feeling of the last half was very well done and the tension was kept up very well because of the music and calmness that was very unsettling throughout. I'm surprised to see llewyn Davis on here, but I guess it has music so it's not too surprising. I already mentioned lone Survivor last time. All in all I'm actually going to give the edge here to Captain Phillips or gravity. as much as I loved Hobbit.
- Projected Winner - Gravity
(Personal Pick - Captain Phillips)
BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
“Dallas Buyers Club” Adruitha Lee and Robin Mathews
“Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa” Stephen Prouty
“The Lone Ranger” Joel Harlow and Gloria Pasqua-Casny
But let's be honest, the big elephant in the room is Bad Grandpa. I mean, Seriously? giving Jackass a nomination? I can fully see where the nomination is coming from but I hope to God they don't win. just making one guy look like an old guy (complete with old balls) is not a huge undertaking.
I actually think Lone ranger now has a pretty good shot. I woulda liked to see Hobbit with a nomination but as I've been reminded it was nominated last year, and will probably be up for it next year. Dallas Buyers club is the safe bet, just because it's the only movie that wasn't critically panned, but still, Lone ranger has some different looks going on.
- Projected winner - Lone Ranger
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“The Broken Circle Breakdown” Belgium
“The Great Beauty” Italy
“The Hunt” Denmark
“The Missing Picture” Cambodia
“Omar” Palestine
Crap, another one I've not seen any of. I had the option to see Broken Circle Breakdown at the film fest, but obviously I missed out.
This time I';m going to go a bit easier and side with the Golden Globes. they Picked Great Beauty, so I will to.
- Projected Winner - The Great Beauty
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Michael Wilkinson, “American Hustle”
William Chang Suk Ping, “The Grandmaster”
Catherine Martin, “The Great Gatsby”
Michael O’Connor, “The Invisible Woman”
Patricia Norris, “12 Years a Slave”
Again No Hobbit? Blasphemy!
Ok, that's out of my system. All of these are Period pieces. The academy loves to give this Oscar to period pieces.
American Hustle is the 70's, yeah It's a period piece but it's still not a huge way back. The costumes were good, all fit the part...and Amy Adams, well, yeah, I approve of her dresses, alot. Grandmaster is an odd pick, It's very well conceived and the costumes were really good, but it's not any different than other films out of china, the whole thing felt like it was made from other films. Great Gatsby is just another 1920's film. yeah it had different things here and there but it's the same we've seen. I haven't seen the Invisible Woman, but it has similar costumes to Elizabeth and other renaissance type movies.
And then there's 12 years a slave. it's a power house of almost everything. I'd be amazed if it doesn't take this hands down.
- Projected Winner - 12 Years a Slave
BEST FILM EDITING
“American Hustle” Jay Cassidy, Crispin Struthers and Alan Baumgarten
“Captain Phillips” Christopher Rouse
“Dallas Buyers Club” John Mac McMurphy and Martin Pensa
“Gravity” Alfonso Cuarón and Mark Sanger
“12 Years a Slave” Joe Walker
first off, I'm glad to see Wolf of Wallstreet isn't up for this. If you read my review you'd know I had major issue with it. anyway, I'm leaning towards Gravity on this one.
Hear me out. American hustle was edited just as well as any other movie. as was Captain Phillips. the editing was good but nothing out of the ordinary or special. Can't vouch for Dallas Buyers Club or 12 Years a slave, but I'm sure they're just as good.
Now take Gravity as an example. the Editing actually helps blend together some insanely difficult shots into long continuous shots and scenes, making you feel inside the movie. It's an amazing film.
- Projected Winner - Gravity
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
“American Hustle” - Production Design: Judy Becker; Set Decoration: Heather Loeffler
“Gravity” - Production Design: Andy Nicholson; Set Decoration: Rosie Goodwin and Joanne Woollard
“The Great Gatsby” - Production Design: Catherine Martin; Set Decoration: Beverley Dunn
“Her” - Production Design: K.K. Barrett; Set Decoration: Gene Serdena
“12 Years a Slave” - Production Design: Adam Stockhausen; Set Decoration: Alice Baker
My Category! the Category I hope to someday win in!
this is one I actually feel rather strongly about. so I'll go into some more detail.
First off, this category is for Set Design mostly. It's awarded to Production designers and Set Decorators. first off I'm going to Take out Gravity. strictly because 95% of their Sets are Digital. not saying it doesn't have a chance, but because the other films have some pretty good set pieces and are period pieces, and in the future, on earth.
Next up is Her. I marvels at the Color and sets in her, yet I had a hard time differentiating the sets from the locations. that's probably a good sign. I loved the colors and the look of this movie. If you read my review you know i loved everything about it. the sets were great and the overall look was spot on. I would like to see this win, but it's going to be a touch race.
American Hustle captured the 70's well. never felt like anything was out of place nor did it feel too special. I've never really liked the 70's as a setting, the sets feel bland in all of them. American hustle just wasn't different enough to stand out to me in Production Design.
Great Gatsby. I really didn't like great Gatsby. It had some good visual flair I'll give it that but overall it feels like a lot of pomp and circumstance with no real reason. but from a production design standpoint it does a very good job of capturing the time and feel of the 20's.
12 years a slave will win. that's all I can say. It's a masterpiece. I think, I've still yet to see it but it's the farthest from our own time and the mood and setting is very different than our own. making it the logistical front runner in this category.
- Projected Winner - 12 Years a Slave
(Personal Pick - Her)
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
“The Grandmaster”
“Gravity”
“Inside Llewyn Davis”
“Nebraska”
“Prisoners”
well, I'm prefacing 'Cinematography' with the fact that it's the Cinematographers job to design and choreograph every shot of the movie. whether it's all live action, or on a green screen stage. either way the Cinematographer has an extremely important job.
The grandmaster had a pretty cool look to it and had many beautiful shots, but in my show it was a bit too dark. I don't know if that's on purpose or not but I wasn't all that impressed with it. Inside llewyn Davis looks normal, nothing overly amazing. Nebraska gets the artsy addition of Black and White. and Prisoners was great all the way around.
But this category belongs with Gravity. The Camera brought you into the movie and never let you go. I know there was some backlash last year wit Life of Pi. but look at the visuals in that. they were amazing, screw you if you think CGI makes a cinematographer's work moot.
- Projected Winner - Gravity
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
“Before Midnight” – Written by Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke
“Captain Phillips” – Screenplay by Billy Ray
“Philomena” – Screenplay by Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope
“12 Years a Slave” – Screenplay by John Ridley
“The Wolf of Wall Street” – Screenplay by Terence Winter
The screenplay categories are usually a bit tough to categorize, I've seen the movies but I haven't read the scripts. Quite often the movies with Ingenious dialogue win (like, say Social Network) but lately there haven't been many Social network level dialogue out there.
To me Captain Phillips felt mostly improvised. I enjoyed the chemistry between the kidnappers and Tom Hanks, who really deserves a nomination, but it wasn't impactful enough for the Oscar.
I've harped on Wolf of Wallstreet quite a bit. and I genuinely liked the movie, but would I give it an Oscar for it's script? not really.
Didn't get around to seeing Before Midnight or Philomena. Wouldn't expect them to get much love this year.
But this year should go to 12 Years a Slave. this juggernaut should steamroll in almost every category.
- Projected winner - 12 Years a Slave
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
“American Hustle” – Written by Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell
“Blue Jasmine” – Written by Woody Allen
“Her” – Written by Spike Jonze
“Nebraska” – Written by Bob Nelson
“Dallas Buyers Club” – Written by Craig Borten & Melisa Wallack
And now the better Script category. Yeah it still takes skill to adapt something, but to create a completely new story is something totally different.
I haven't seen Nebraska, but it looks like a good character driven drama. usual Oscar bait, but not the strongest this year.
Personally I think Dallas Buyers club is an actors movie, not so much a scriptwriter's movie.
American Hustle was 75% improvisation. It was good but the fact is, the script wasn't important while shooting so why would it be important at the Oscars?
Blue jasmine was fantastic, and Cate Blanchett read those lines with such amazing prowess that they leapt off the page. Could win it, but It came out so long ago I can't help but think it'll get buried in the voting.
Finally, Spike Jonze won the Golden Globe for his Her script, and he damn well deserved it. I loved her all around. I would be amazed if the Academy doesn't follow Suit
- Projected Winner - Her
BEST DIRECTOR
David O. Russell, “American Hustle”
Alfonso Cuaron, “Gravity”
Alexander Payne, “Nebraska”
Steve McQueen, “12 Years a Slave”
Martin Scorsese, “The Wolf of Wall Street”
Okay, final 6 Awards, Finally.
First off, As much as I like Scorsese, He doesn't deserve an Oscar for wolf of wallstreet. I'm sorry, the movie just wasn't as strong as it could have been.
To me this category is a battle between the Direction of actors n 12 years a slave, and the technical direction in Gravity. I loved Gravity from start to finish. it had astounding visuals and was pulse pounding all the way through. but can a basically one act space movie beat the drama of Slaves?
The Academy, in my opinion, pick higher brow pictures, so I'll hesitantly give Steve Mcqueen the nod for this one. the academy could surprise me, but I Doubt it.
- Projected Winner - Steve Mcqueen
(Personal Pick - Alfonso Cuaron)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Lupita Nyong’o, “12 Years a Slave”
Jennifer Lawrence, “American Hustle”
June Squibb, “Nebraska”
Julia Roberts, “August: Osage County”
Sally Hawkins, “Blue Jasmine”
I enjoy the acting categories, they're much easier to quantify then say, the sound categories.
I'm writing out June Squibb and Julia Roberts, could be amazing acting jobs, but no-one is talking about them. One thing that really helps collect votes is backers, like Sponsors in Hunger games. if no-ones talking about you, no one cares.
Sally Hawkins should be included in that list, but I've seen Blue Jasmine, she's good in it, but nothing astounding.
Now for the real duel, Lupita Nyong'o and Jennifer Lawrence. I've heard nothing but good things about Lupita in 12 years a Slave. to me Lupita has the same issue and Quvenzhané Wallis had a couple years ago. she seems amazing, but we've yet to see her in anything else. is it truly a great acting job if she just plays the same character every time?
This one will probably go to Jennifer Lawrence. She was a good character, but not quite far enough from some of her other characters to really convince me she deserves it.
- Projected Winner - Jennifer Lawrence
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Barkhad Abdi, “Captain Phillips”
Bradley Cooper, “American Hustle”
Michael Fassbender, “12 Years a Slave”
Jonah Hill, “The Wolf of Wall Street”
Jared Leto, “Dallas Buyers Club”
Another tight category. Let's break this down too.
Barkhad Abdi was brilliant as Muse. (his character's name was Muse?) But, just like Nyong'o in Supporting actress, We've never seen him in anything else. I seriously get the idea that he's just like that all the time.
Bradley Cooper was fine, besides the Jewfro he doesn't stand out much compared to other characters he's played. but he plays himself very well.
Michael Fassbender has gotten nothing but positive reviews as the Slave owner. It's very possible he gets the trophy, and he's established himself as a great enough actor to deserve a best actor win.
Why oh Why does Jonah hill get nominations? I mean, they give him fake teeth, and he gets a nomination. there's nothing here that warrants an acting nomination.
and Jared Leto, Holy Crap. this is one of the most amazing actor Transformations I've seen in a damn long time. I saw 30 Seconds to Mars in concert a few months ago, and I would have never connected Leto as the Transgendered person in this movie. They are two completely different looking people. completely unrecognizable. unlike Bradley Cooper and Jonah Hill, who just look like themselves, with different hair or different teeth.
- Projected Winner - Jared Leto
BEST ACTRESS
Amy Adams, “American Hustle”
Cate Blanchett, “Blue Jasmine”
Sandra Bullock, “Gravity”
Judi Dench, “Philomena”
Meryl Streep, “August: Osage County”
I called Best actress back in August. I saw Blue Jasmine and ever since I said that Cate Blanchett deserves an Oscar, hands down.
Meryl streep gets many Oscar noms, but August osage county is almost too obscure to win.
For all the nominations philomena has I just don't see it winning over the more powerful films. no matter how good judi Dench is in Philomena, the movie overall just doesn't carry enough weight.
Ok, I'll admit, I enjoyed Amy Adams in American hustle (it's the shirts, yeah) but was her acting job better than Blue Jasmine? no, no way in hell.
and finally the 'why exactly is she nominated?' nomination. I know what you're saying 'She carried gravity" no, the special effects carried that movie. Any actress could have played 90% of that role. She was good, but the movie was still a tour de force of the effects department and the actors take a back seat to them
- Projected Winner - Cate Blanchett
BEST ACTOR
Christian Bale, “American Hustle”
Bruce Dern, “Nebraska”
Leonardo DiCaprio, “The Wolf of Wall Street”
Chiwetel Ejiofor, “12 Years a Slave”
Matthew McConaughey, “Dallas Buyers Club”
So actress was a bit of a landslide. Actor is a bit more balanced.
I'll cross off bruce Dern first, he's a fine actor but Nebraska, like Philomena is just the underdog in everything. I doubt itll get any love this year.
Moving on, Christian bale was good, and at times completely unrecognizable, the weight he gained for the role was great and it really shows his range as an actor. but is he going to win? I dont know. He's up against some stiff competition.
Matthew McConaughey won the Golden Globe. Color me amazed, he was not my pick at all. I also would have given him a nomination for Mud instead of Dallas Buyers Club. (I also think Phoenix deserves a win for Her) I'd not me surprised if McConaughey wins, but He's not my top pick.
Chiwetel Ejiofor is an extremely underrated actor. And he is amazing in 12 Years a Slave. He's definitely a front runner this year. Yay Operative!
and the Comedy actor winner at the golden globes. Dicaprio is a good actor. but he's very good at playing basically himself, over, and over. I just dont think he deserves a win for playing basically a character he's played multiple times.
- Projected Winner - Chiwetel Ejiofor
BEST PICTURE
“12 Years a Slave”
“American Hustle”
“Captain Phillips”
“Dallas Buyers Club”
“Gravity”
“Her”
“Nebraska”
“Philomena”
“The Wolf of Wall Street”
And the big one! If you made it this far, I congratulate you. somehow I didn't bore you too much. or you skipped ahead...that's more probable.
First off, the Longshots: Philomena, Nebraska, Captain Phillips. all are good, sure, but compared to the other movies they just don't have what it takes.
next up, the popular directors: Wolf of Wallstreet, American Hustle. While both are good, I can honestly say they won't win. I feel like they only got the huge amount of nominations because of the directors instead of the actual movies.
ok, the last ones are 12 Years a slave, Dallas Buyers Club, Gravity, and Her.
Well, Unfortunately I have to remove Her. I absolutely Loved it, and it's my personal Pick, but it has absolutely no buzz and Its against some very stiff opponents.
Next off is Dallas Buyers Club. basically, it's an actor movie. the actors will get awards, but it'll be forgotten in the final category.
The Real Battle is Between Gravity and 12 Years a Slave. Gravity is an amazing Visual Film. and 12 Years is all about the emotions and acting. two completely different sides of Filmmaking.
Projected Best Picture Winner - Gravity
(Personal Pick - Her)
So, there it is! after weeks of stalling, i finally finished it up!
I'll do a post Oscars wrap up, see how close I got.
Hey Tell you what. Check out this Printable Nominee List, Check how you do and let me know!
if you agree with this list let me know, I enjoy the feedback
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