Anyway I've made my predictions on oscar.go.com (the way I do every year) and I decided since I have a movie blog I might as well post them here. I will also post a blog after the awards (probably way after) and discuss how many of my picks were right (and how many were wrong). On a side note the best I've ever done at predicting was 18 right out of 24 (the year Lord of the Rings: Return of the King won 11 awards). So keep that in mind (and don't get mad at me if you bet I'd be right in all 24 categories, you shouldn't be gambling anyway).
Well enough chit chat, on to my predictions!
Best Picture
The nominees are:
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Nebraska
Philomena
12 Years a Slave
The Wolf of Wall Street
My pick: 12 Years a Slave. Many people have predicted that Gravity (the space movie with Sandra Bullock) will win this award. To those people I say "are you nuts?" You think a space movie is going to win over a movie about slavery based on a true story? Have you even seen the Oscars before? People are saying that because Gravity made more at the box office it is the clear winner. Yeah, that's why James Cameron's Avatar (which made over 2 billion dollars at the box office and is the highest grossing film of all time at the moment) won the year it was nominated right? Oh it didn't win? The Oscar went to a film about the war in the middle east? You don't say?! Who could have predicted that? The Academy almost never cares about the box office of a particular movie. That's not to say that there is no chance Gravity will win, but the odds are definitely not in its favor.
Actor in a Leading Role
The nominees are:
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)
My pick: Matthew McConaughey. This has been a great year for McConaughey. He has had several critically acclaimed performances: Mud, Dallas Buyers Club, and Wolf of Wall Street. He has totally reinvented himself from romantic comedy star to a serious actor. And the Academy loves it when stars reinvent themselves. Especially if it involves weight loss. McConaughey lost over 40 pounds for this role. He plays a man diagnosed with AIDS. All of those factors pretty much makes him a lock for this award. But you never know. The Academy might decide to finally give it to DiCaprio. But I doubt it.
Actor in a Supporting Role
The nominees are:
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)
My pick: Jared Leto. Leto plays a transgender woman who is HIV-positive. Do I even need to explain this one? But if I had my way Fassbender would win. He is one of the best actors working today and he deserves an Oscar.
Actress in a Leading Role
The nominees:
Amy Adams (American Hustle)
Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine)
Sandra Bullock (Gravity)
Judi Dench (Philomena)
Meryl Streep (August: Osage County)
My pick: Cate Blanchett. Blanchett is in a word sublime. ALWAYS! She is a phenomenal actress and she deserves another Oscar. And quick question: is Blanchett a vampire? Because it doesn't seem like she has aged since 2001. Suspicious.
Actress in a Supporting Role
The nominees:
Sally Hawkins (Blue Jasmine)
Jennifer Lawrence (American Hustle)
Lupita Nyong'o (12 Years a Slave)
Julia Roberts (August: Osage County)
June Squibb (Nebraska)
My pick: Lupita Nyong'o. This is probably the closest race of the night with Lawrence and Nyong'o neck and neck. But I have to go with Nyong'o. I just don't think the Academy will give Lawrence an Oscar 2 years in a row. Now it could still be Lawrence (she is very popular right now) but I'm still going with Nyong'o.
Animated Feature Film
The nominees:
The Croods
Despicable Me 2
Ernest & Celestine
Frozen
The Wind Rises
My pick: Frozen. This isn't even a contest. Although I am confused as to how The Croods got nominated over Monster's University. I've seen both and The Croods really shouldn't have been nominated.
Cinematography
The nominees are:
The Grandmaster
Gravity
Inside Llewyn Davis
Nebraska
Prisoners
My pick: Gravity. Yeah, it was set in space and I just don't see anything else winning this award.
Costume Design
The nominees:
American Hustle
The Grandmaster
The Great Gatsby
The Invisible Woman
12 Years a Slave
My pick: The Great Gatsby. This is a really tough one. I could see this going to Gatsby, 12 Years, or Hustle. But I'm going with Gatsby because it's a Baz Lurhmann film set in the 20's.
Directing
The nominees:
American Hustle
Gravity
Nebraska
12 Years a Slave
The Wolf of Wall Street
My pick: Alfonso Cuarón for Gravity. I think this will be a year where the best picture and best director awards go to different films. Like last year. I could see Steve McQueen getting it for 12 Years, because he has been snubbed before. But I don't think so.
Documentary Feature
The nominees:
The Act of Killing
Cutie and the Boxer
Dirty Wars
The Square
20 Feet from Stardom
My pick: 20 Feet from Stardom. The award should probably go to Act of Killing from what I hear but I have a feeling the Academy will award the feel good film about overlooked divas. But I could be wrong.
Documentary Short Subject
The nominees:
CaveDigger
Facing Fear
Karama Has No Walls
The Lady in No. 6: Music Saved My Life
Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall
My pick: The Lady in No. 6. This film is about the oldest living Holocaust survivor (who just passed away at the age of 110). Do I really need to explain why this will win?
Film Editing
The nominees:
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
12 Years a Slave
My pick: Captain Phillips. I'll be honest, I really don't have lot of faith in this pick. It could easily go to Gravity. But I'm thinking this will be the one and only award Captain Phillips will get.
Foreign Language Film
The nominees:
The Broken Circle Breakdown
The Great Beauty
The Hunt
The Missing Picture
Omar
My pick: The Hunt. Again not too much faith in this pick. Watch it be the one year I don't pick the film that won the Golden Globe (The Great Beauty) and have that film win the Oscar just to spite me.
Makeup and Hairstyling
The nominees:
Dallas Buyers Club
Bad Grandpa
The Lone Ranger
My pick: Dallas Buyers Club. This is the weirdest group ever. I don't have any idea how Lone Ranger even got nominated. But I'm going with the safe bet. Just because I don't think the Oscar will go to Bad Grandpa.
Original Score
The nominees:
The Book Thief
Gravity
Her
Philomena
Saving Mr. Banks
My pick: Gravity. This one is a tough too. I could see this going to Philomena or Saving Mr. Banks. But I pick Gravity because there isn't anything else to hear in space except this score.
Original Song
The nominees:
Happy (Despicable Me 2)
Let it Go (Frozen)
The Moon Song (Her)
Ordinary Love (Mandela: A Long Walk to Freedom)
My pick: Let it Go. This song is great and I have the feeling the Academy will give yet another Oscar to a Disney song. But I wouldn't be all that shocked if Happy walked away with the award. That song is everywhere right now.
Production Design
The nominees:
American Hustle
Gravity
The Great Gatsby
Her
12 Years a Slave
My pick: The Great Gatsby. Again I'm going with the Baz Lurhmann film.
Animated Short Film
The nominees:
Feral
Get a Horse!
Mr. Hublot
Possessions
Room on the Broom
My pick: Get a Horse! Can we all just admit that Disney rules the world now?
Live Action Short Film
The nominees:
Aquel No Era Yo (That Wasn't Me)
Avant Que De Tout Perdre (Just before Losing Everything)
Helium
Pitaako Mun Kaikki Hoitaa? (Do I Have to Take Care of Everything?)
The Voorman Problem
My pick: Helium. It involves a dying boy and a magical world. It just feels like the safe bet. Of course don't rule out Voorman.
Sound Editing
The nominees:
All is Lost
Captain Phillips
Gravity
The Hobbit: the Desolation of Smaug
Lone Survivor
My pick: Gravity. Safe bet.
Sound Mixing
The nominees:
Inside Llewyn Davis
Captain Phillips
Gravity
The Hobbit: the Desolation of Smaug
Lone Survivor
My pick: Gravity. Same as sound editing.
Visual Effects
The nominees:
Gravity
The Hobbit: the Desolation of Smaug
Iron Man 3
The Lone Ranger
Star Trek: Into Darkness
My pick: Gravity. Come on, it's SPACE!
Adapted Screenplay
The nominees:
Before Midnight
Captain Phillips
Philomena
12 Years a Slave
The Wolf of Wall Street
My pick: 12 Years a Slave. I think the best picture winner and screenplay will go together. They don't always but I'm betting on this film.
Original Screenplay
The nominees:
American Hustle
Blue Jasmine
Dallas Buyers Club
Her
Nebraska
My pick: American Hustle. This one is also really close to call. But I'm betting that this will be the one and only Oscar this film goes home with. But Her is definitely a contender.
Well there you have it my picks for the Oscars 2014. I'll probably get only half of them right if history is any indication but oh well. It's always fun.
Update: I got 20 out of 24 right!!! A personal best!! GO ME!!!!
