2023 OSCARS: The Winners!

The 2023 Oscars happened and the big winner was Everything Everywhere All At Once, which went home with Seven Oscars overall: Picture, Director, Actress, Supporting Actress, Supporting Actor, Original Screenplay and Editing. Netflix's All Quiet on the Western Front was not far behind with 4: Score, International Feature, Production Design and Cinematography. The billion dollar sequels released last year, Top Gun: Maverick and Avatar: The Way of Water did not go home emptyhanded, winning Sound and Visual Effects, respectively.

In my predictions post of the Top 8 categories at the 95th Academy Awards I only got 5 of 8 correct, missing Jamie Lee Curtis's upset win over Angela Basset, Brendan Fraser's Best Actor win over Colin Farrell and Austin Butler and The Daniels win for Original Screenplay over Tár and The Banshees of Inisherin.

Overall, this year  I ended up with only 15 of 21 Oscar wins correctly predicted. Anyway, here are the winners of this year's Oscars.

Best picture: “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

Best actress: Michelle Yeoh, “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

Best actor: Brendan Fraser, “The Whale”

Best supporting actor: Ke Huy Quan, “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

Best supporting actress: Jamie Lee Curtis, “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

Original song: “Naatu Naatu” from “RRR”

Film editing: “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

Best director: Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

Best animated feature: “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio”

International feature film: “All Quiet on the Western Front” (Germany)

Documentary feature: “Navalny”

Live action short: “An Irish Goodbye”

Cinematography: James Friend, “All Quiet on the Western Front”

Makeup and hairstyling: “The Whale”

Costume design: Ruth E. Carter, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”

Documentary short: “The Elephant Whisperers”

Animated short: “The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse”

Production design: “All Quiet on the Western Front”

Music (original score): Volker Bertelmann, “All Quiet on the Western Front”

Visual Effects: “Avatar: The Way of Water”

Original screenplay: “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

Adapted screenplay: “Women Talking”

Sound: “Top Gun: Maverick”

2023 OSCARS: My Predictions for the Top 8 Categories

Here is my annual prediction post for the 2022 Oscars, i.e. the 95th Academy Awards. I really just consider the Top 8 categories on the blog but I often play the Oscar prediction game like lots of other people (on other websites) where I think about all 24 categories. I generally split my predictions into who I want to win versus (i.e. who I would vote for) as opposed to who I think will win (i.e. who the Academy voters will vote for).

In 2020 I predicted 6 of 8 correctly and last year I predicted 7 of  8 correctly. This year I have seen 6 of the (bolded) 10 Best Picture nominees (haven't seen The Fabelmans, Triangle of Sadness or Women Talking as of this writing but I do intend to watch The Fabelmans eventually). 

Best Picture:

• "All Quiet on the Western Front" 
• "Avatar: The Way of Water" 
• "The Banshees of Inisherin"
• "Elvis"
• "Everything Everywhere All at Once" 
• "The Fabelmans"
• "Tár"
  
• "Top Gun: Maverick"
• "Triangle of Sadness"
• "Women Talking"

SHOULD WIN: Avatar: The Way of Water.
WILL WIN: Everything Everywhere All at Once.

Director:

• Martin McDonagh (“The Banshees of Inisherin”)
• Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”) 
• Steven Spielberg (“The Fabelmans”) 
• Todd Field (“Tár”) 
• Ruben Östlund (“Triangle of Sadness”)

SHOULD WIN: Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once.

WILL WIN: Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once.

Lead Actor:

• Austin Butler (“Elvis”)  
• Colin Farrell (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) 
• Brendan Fraser (“The Whale”)
• Paul Mescal (“Aftersun”) 
• Bill Nighy (“Living”) 

SHOULD WIN: Colin Farrell, The Banshees of Inisherin.

WILL WIN: Austin Butler, Elvis.

Lead Actress:

• Cate Blanchett (“Tár”) 
• Ana de Armas (“Blonde”) 
• Andrea Riseborough (“To Leslie”)
• Michelle Williams (“The Fabelmans”) 
• Michelle Yeoh (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”)

SHOULD WIN: Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once.

WILL WIN: Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Supporting Actor:

• Brendan Gleeson (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) 
• Brian Tyree Henry (“Causeway”) 
• Judd Hirsch (“The Fabelmans”)
• Barry Keoghan (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) 
• Ke Huy Quan (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”) 

SHOULD WIN: Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All at Once

WILL WIN: Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All at Once.

Supporting Actress:

• Angela Bassett (“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”) 
• Hong Chau (“The Whale”) 
• Kerry Condon (“The Banshees of Inisherin”)
• Jamie Lee Curtis (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”) 
• Stephanie Hsu (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”)

SHOULD WIN: Angela Bassett, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

WILL WIN: Angela Bassett, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

Adapted Screenplay:

• “All Quiet on the Western Front,” Screenplay by Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson & Ian Stokell
• “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery,” Written by Rian Johnson
• “Living,” Written by Kazuo Ishiguro
• “Top Gun: Maverick,” Screenplay by Ehren Kruger and Eric Warren Singer and Christopher McQuarrie; Story by Peter Craig and Justin Marks
• “Women Talking,” Screenplay by Sarah Polley

SHOULD WIN: All Quiet on the Western Front.

WILL WIN: Women Talking.

Original Screenplay:

• “The Banshees of Inisherin,” Written by Martin McDonagh
• “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” Written by Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert
• “The Fabelmans,” Written by Steven Spielberg & Tony Kushner
• “Tár,” Written by Todd Field
• “Triangle of Sadness,” Written by Ruben Östlund

SHOULD WIN: Tár.

WILL WIN: The Banshees of Inisherin.

2016 OSCARS: My Final Prediction of the Winners

Below are my predictions for the Top 8 categories for the 88th annual Academy Awards. Last year I correctly predicted 7 of the Top 8 categories. Below I put in red the movie or person I want to win, and in blue the person I think actually will win.

Best Picture

• The Big Short
• Bridge of Spies
• Brooklyn
• Mad Max: Fury Road
• The Martian
• The Revenant
• Room
• Spotlight

SHOULD WIN: The Big Short 

WILL WIN: The Revenant

Best Director

• Alejandro G. Iñárritu, "The Revenant"
• Lenny Abrahamson, "Room"
• Tom McCarthy, "Spotlight"
• Adam McKay, "The Big Short"
• George Miller, "Mad Max: Fury Road"

SHOULD WIN: George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road

WILL WIN: Alejandro G. Iñárritu, The Revenant

Best Actress

• Cate Blanchett, "Carol"
• Brie Larson, "Room"
• Jennifer Lawrence, "Joy"
• Charlotte Rampling, "45 Years"
• Saoirse Ronan, "Brooklyn"

SHOULD WIN: Brie Larson, Room

WILL WIN: Brie Larson, Room

Best Actor

• Bryan Cranston, "Trumbo"
• Matt Damon, "The Martian"
• Leonardo DiCaprio, "The Revenant"
• Michael Fassbender, "Steve Jobs"
• Eddie Redmayne, "The Danish Girl"

SHOULD WIN: Leonardo Dicaprio, The Revenant

WILL WIN: Leonardo Dicaprio, The Revenant

Best Supporting Actress

• Jennifer Jason Leigh, "The Hateful Eight"
• Rooney Mara, "Carol"
• Rachel McAdams, "Spotlight"
• Kate Winslet, "Steve Jobs"
• Alicia Vikander, "The Danish Girl"

SHOULD WIN: Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl

WILL WIN: Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl

Best Supporting Actor

• Christian Bale, "The Big Short"
• Mark Ruffalo, "Spotlight"
• Mark Rylance, "Bridge of Spies"
• Sylvester Stallone, "Creed"
• Tom Hardy, "The Revenant"

SHOULD WIN: Tom Hardy, The Revenant

WILL WIN: Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies

Best Original Screenplay

• Bridge of Spies
• Ex Machina
• Inside Out
• Spotlight
• Straight Outta Compton

SHOULD WIN: Ex Machina

WILL WIN: Spotlight

Best Adapted Screenplay

• The Big Short
• Brooklyn
• Carol
• The Martian
• Room

SHOULD WIN: The Martian

WILL WIN: Room

Oscar Totals:
1. Mad Max: Fury Road (5)
2. The Revenant (4)

2014 OSCARS: Reviewing The Winners

This year's Oscar ceremony had very few surprises except at the very end, when for the very first time, a film directed by a Black man about black people was named Best Picture of the year, when 12 Years A Slave beat out Gravity for the night's top honor. Interestingly, even though Gravity and American Hustle went in to the night with 10 nominations each (and 12 Years A Slave with 9), Gravity romped home with 7 Oscars (Director, Editing, Sound Effects, Sound Mixing, Score, Cinematography and Visual Effects) while American Hustle was shut out! That being said, 12 Years A Slave only won two other Oscars besides Best Picture, Lupita Nyong'o won Best Supporting Actress and John Ridley won for Best Adapted Screenplay. Both became examples of that rare phenomenon, a Black Oscar winner. The first Latino man won for Best Director when Alfonso Cuarón won the Best Director Oscar, as expected, for Gravity.

So, how did I do in my predictions this year? In the Top 8 categories, I got 6 of 8 correct, only missing Best Picture and Best Supporting Actor, and really in both those characters the person that I wanted to win, did so, but they were not who I thought was going to win. This is better than last year, when  I only correctly predicted 5 of 8 correctly, but no where near my high of 2008 (8/8) or 2012 (7/8).

In the Top 24 categories last year I had a dismal 15 of 24, this year I was at 18 of 24 of the winners list. Here's looking to next year!

2014 OSCARS: My Final Predictions In All Categories

Yesterday I posted my predictions post for the Top 8 Academy Awards categories and today, just a few hours before the Oscars begin at  5:30pm PDT (hosted by Ellen Degeneres) I am publicizing my final predictions (no guts, no glory!) in all 24 categories. Last year I only got 14 of 24 correct. I hope to do better this year.

Best Picture: Gravity (2nd: 12 Years A Slave) 

Director: Alfonso Cuaron (2nd: David O. Russell) 

Original Screenplay: Her (2nd: American Hustle) 

Adapted Screenplay: 12 Years A Slave (2nd: Captain Phillips) 

Actor: Matthew McConaughey  (2nd: Leonardo DiCaprio ) 

Actress: Cate Blanchett (2nd: Amy Adams) 

Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o (2nd: Jennifer Lawrence) 

Supporting Actor: Bradley Cooper  (2nd: Jared Leto) 

Editing: Gravity (2nd: Captain Phillips) 

Production Design: Great Gatsby (2nd: American Hustle) 

Sound Mixing: Gravity (2nd: Captain Phillips) 

Sound Editing: Gravity (2nd: All Is Lost) 

Cinematography: Gravity  (2nd: Inside Llewyn Davis) 

Costume Design: American Hustle (2nd: The Great Gatsby) 

Documentary: 20 Feet From Stardom   (2nd: The Square) 

Foreign Language: The Great Beauty (Italy) (2nd: The Hunt (Denmark)) 

Animated Film: Frozen (2nd: The Wind Rises) 

Makeup: Dallas Buyers Club

Score: Gravity (2nd: Philomena) 

Song: "Happy" (from Happy Feet 2) (2nd: "Let It Go" from Frozen) 

Visual Effects: Gravity  (2nd: Star Trek Into Darkness) 

Animated Short: Get A Horse (2nd: Feral) 

Live Action Short: Helium (2nd: Avant Que De Tout Perdre)  

Documentary Short: Cavedigger (2nd: Lady in Number 6)

I think the big winer will be Gravity with at least 6 Oscars, but there's an outside chance 12 Years A Slave could outshine it in the Top 8 (Picture, Adapted Screenplay, Supporting Actress, Supporting Actor).

2014 OSCARS: My Predictions of The Winners In The Top 8 Categories

The 86th Annual Academy Awards ceremony, better known as The Oscars, are happening on Sunday March 2. The nominations were released on January 15th. Last year I correctly predicted 5 winners in the Top 8 categories and only 14 of 24 overall.

Below are my prediction for the film or person I want to win ("SHOULD WIN") and the film or person I predict to actually win ("WILL WIN").

Best Picture

• "The Wolf of Wall Street"
• "Captain Phillips"
• "Her"
• "American Hustle"
• "Gravity"
• "Dallas Buyers Club"
• "Nebraska"
• "Philomena"
• "12 Years A Slave"

This is the most important category and surprisingly this year is one of the toughest to predict. Last year's winner was Ben Affleck's Argo which was a surprise to some, but was really not unexpected after Affleck was not even nominated for Best Director, a snub which angered a large segment of the Academy. There is a threeway race for the top spot between American Hustle, 12 Years A Slave and Gravity. Gravity and American Hustle lead the pack with 10 nominations, with 12 Years A Slave close behind with 9. Most Oscarologists are calling for 12 Years A Slave to win Best Picture but Gravity is the one with the largest following thanks to its 200-plus million box-office haul American Hustle has its hopefuls as well, but if it were to win it would be because it was on enough people's 2nd place slot that the preferential ballot allows it to sneak out a win. Since I picked 12 Years A Slave as my favorite film of the year I understand why people want it to win, but I think the Academy will go with the crowd pleaser (Gravity), especially since more often than not Best Picture and Best Director are very often aligned and Gravity's director is a lock to win.

SHOULD WIN: 12 Years A Slave

WILL WIN: Gravity

Best director

• Steve McQueen -- "12 Years a Slave"
• David O. Russell -- "American Hustle"
• Alfonso Cuaron -- "Gravity"
• Alexander Payne -- "Nebraska"
• Martin Scorsese -- "The Wolf of Wall Street"

SHOULD WIN: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity 

WILL WIN: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity 

Best actor

• Bruce Dern -- "Nebraska"
• Chiwetel Ejiofor -- "12 Years a Slave"
• Matthew McConaughey -- "Dallas Buyers Club"
• Leonardo DiCaprio -- "The Wolf of Wall Street"
• Christian Bale -- "American Hustle"

SHOULD WIN: Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years A Slave 

WILL WIN: Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club 

Best actress

• Amy Adams -- "American Hustle"
• Cate Blanchett -- "Blue Jasmine"
• Judi Dench -- "Philomena"
• Sandra Bullock -- "Gravity"
• Meryl Streep -- "August: Osage County"

This really should be Amy Adams year. She is a 5-time nominee and the only person in this category who has not yet won an Oscar, but Blanchett has won every precursor award and is widely respected. She is going to win a second Oscar eventually, and it might as well be this year. I just hope that Adams does not become another Glenn Close, much nominated and also widely respected but never rewarded with Hollywood's highest honor.

SHOULD WIN: Amy Adams, American Hustle 

WILL WIN: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Best supporting actor

• Barkhad Abdi -- "Captain Phillips"
• Bradley Cooper -- "American Hustle"
• Jonah Hill -- "The Wolf of Wall Street"
• Jared Leto -- "Dallas Buyers Club"
• Michael Fassbender -- "12 Years a Slave"

Jared Leto appears to have a lock on this category, having won the Golden Globe and SAG award but I find it hard to believe that a little film like Dallas Buyers Club could win two acting Oscars. Then again, the Best Picture nomination for this film is an indication of the overall strength for the film amongst the Academy members. However, the Academy often likes to use the Supporting categories to make surprise wins for an up and coming stars. The question is who would they reward instead? I think the choices would be either Fassbender or Cooper. Who wins this category is very dependent on who wins the Supporting Actress category. If Nyong'o wins there, then most likely Cooper would win here. If Lawrence wins there (which I think is unlikely) then Fassbender would be the back up choice. It is still possible that Leto could win, and I think that he should, but I'm not entirely convinced that he will win.

SHOULD WIN: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club 

WILL WIN: Bradley Cooper, American Hustle

Best supporting actress

• Jennifer Lawrence -- "American Hustle"
• Lupita Nyong'o -- "12 Years a Slave"
• June Squibb -- "Nebraska"
• Julia Roberts -- "August: Osage County"
• Sally Hawkins -- "Blue Jasmine"

SHOULD WIN: Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years A Slave 

WILL WIN: Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years A Slave 

Best original screenplay

• "American Hustle" -- David O. Russell and Eric Warren Singer
• "Blue Jasmine" -- Woody Allen
• "Her" -- Spike Jonze
• "Nebraska" -- Bob Nelson
• "Dallas Buyers Club" -- Craig Borten and Melissa Wallack

SHOULD WIN: David O. Russell and Eric Warren Singer, American Hustle 

WILL WIN: Spike Jonze, Her 

Best adapted screenplay

• "12 Years a Slave" -- John Ridley
• "Before Midnight" -- Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke and Richard Linklater
• "The Wolf of Wall Street" -- Terence Winter
• "Captain Phillips" -- Billy Ray
• "Philomena" -- Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope

SHOULD WIN: John Ridley, 12 Years A Slave   

WILL WIN: John Ridley, 12 Years A Slave  

The film that ends the night with the most wins will be Gravity, probably ending with at least five, most likely Picture, Director, Sound, Sound Mixing, Visual Effects and Score.

2014 OSCARS: Actual Nominations List!

 

The nominees for the 86th annual Academy Awards have been released. I predicted the nominations in the top 8 categories yesterday. American Hustle and Gravity lead the nominations with ten followed by  12 Years A Slave with 9.

The big surprise was the surprising total of Dallas Buyers Club with 6. Notable snubs were Tom Hanks not getting nominated for Best Actor in Captain Phillips and his Saving Mr. Banks co-star Emma Thompson not getting nominated for Best Actress.

Best Picture

• "The Wolf of Wall Street"
• "Captain Phillips"
• "Her"
• "American Hustle"
• "Gravity"
• "Dallas Buyers Club"
• "Nebraska"
• "Philomena"

Best director

• Steve McQueen -- "12 Years a Slave"
• David O. Russell -- "American Hustle"
• Alfonso Cuaron -- "Gravity"
• Alexander Payne -- "Nebraska"
• Martin Scorsese -- "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best actor

• Bruce Dern -- "Nebraska"
• Chiwetel Ejiofor -- "12 Years a Slave"
• Matthew McConaughey -- "Dallas Buyers Club"
• Leonardo DiCaprio -- "The Wolf of Wall Street"
• Christian Bale -- "American Hustle"

Best actress

• Amy Adams -- "American Hustle"
• Cate Blanchett -- "Blue Jasmine"
• Judi Dench -- "Philomena"
• Sandra Bullock -- "Gravity"
• Meryl Streep -- "August: Osage County"

Best supporting actor

• Barkhad Abdi -- "Captain Phillips"
• Bradley Cooper -- "American Hustle"
• Jonah Hill -- "The Wolf of Wall Street"
• Jared Leto -- "Dallas Buyers Club"
• Michael Fassbender -- "12 Years a Slave"

Best supporting actress

• Jennifer Lawrence -- "American Hustle"
• Lupita Nyong'o -- "12 Years a Slave"
• June Squibb -- "Nebraska"
• Julia Roberts -- "August: Osage County"
• Sally Hawkins -- "Blue Jasmine"

Best original screenplay

• "American Hustle" -- David O. Russell and Eric Warren Singer
• "Blue Jasmine" -- Woody Allen
• "Her" -- Spike Jonze
• "Nebraska" -- Bob Nelson
• "Dallas Buyers Club" -- Craig Borten and Melisa Wallack

Best adapted screenplay

• "12 Years a Slave" -- John Ridley
• "Before Midnight" -- Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke and Richard Linklater
• "The Wolf of Wall Street" -- Terence Winter
• "Captain Phillips" -- Billy Ray
• "Philomena" -- Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope

The awards are being given out on Sunday March 2.

2014 OSCARS: Predicted Nominations

Here are my predictions for the nominations for the 86th Academy Awards that will be announced publicly on Thursday.

12 Years A Slave
American Hustle
August: Osage County

Gravity

Her

Inside Llewyn Davis
Nebraska

Best Director

• Steve McQueen, 12 Years A Slave
• Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
• David O. Russell, American Hustle
• Paul Greengrass, Captain Phillips
• Spike Jonze, Her

Best Actress

• Amy Adams, American Hustle
• Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
• Sandra Bullock, Gravity
• Judi Dench, Philomena
• Emma Thompson, Saving Mr. Banks

Best Actor

• Christian Bale, American Hustle
• Bruce Dern,  Nebraska
• Tom Hanks, Captain Phillips
• Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years A Slave
• Mathew McConnaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Supporting Actress

• Sally Hawkins, Blue Jasmine
• Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years A Slave
• Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle
• June Squibb, Nebraska
• Oprah Winfrey, The Butler

Best Supporting Actor

• Barkhad Abdi, Captain Phillips
• Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club
• Michael Fassbender, 12 Years A Slave
• Bradley Cooper,  American Hustle
• James Gandolfini, Enough Said

Best Original Screenplay

• Woody Allen, Blue Jasmine
• Nicole Holofcener, Enough Said
• Alfonso Cuaron and Jonas Cuaron, Gravity
• Spike Jonze, Her
• Bob Nelson, Nebraska

Best Adapted Screenplay

• John Ridley, 12 Years A Slave
• Tracy Letts, August: Osage County
• Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy & Ethan Hawke, Before Midnight
• Billy Ray, Captain Phillips
• Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope, Philomena

Total Nominations

1. American Hustle

Ian McKellen Confirmed For "The Hobbit"

openly gay Sir Ian McKellen, 71

Ian McKellen, who played Gandalf in all three Lord of the Rings movies, has signed on to reprise his Oscar-nominated role in the two upcoming films being made by Peter Jackson of their juvenile fiction prequel The Hobbit.

McKellen joins other stars from the very successful Lord of the Rings trilogy to return to Middle Earth for the prequel movies like Cate Blanchett as Galadriel, Elijah Wood as Frodo and Andy Serkis  as Gollum.

2009 Oscars: Nomination Predictions

Tomorrow morning at 5am PST (Thursday January 22) the 81st Academy Award nominations will be announced for films released in 2008. The Golden Globe awards were previously announced on Sunday January 11th. After seeing the actual nominations on Thursday I will post a more extensive post with my predictions for the Top 8 awards. In previous years, Mad Professah has done pretty well in predicting both nominations and wins. Last year I won an online Oscars predictions contest (by picking 18 out of 24 awards correct) that resulted in having free Netflix for 6 months!

Best Picture

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Director

• Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
• David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
• Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight
• Gus Van Sant, Milk

Best Actress

• Cate Blanchett, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
• Angelina Jolie, Changeling
• Meryl Streep, Doubt
• Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road

Best Actor

• Richard Jenkins, The Visitor
• Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
• Sean Penn, Milk
• Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

Best Supporting Actress

• Amy Adams, Doubt
• Penelope Cruz, Vicky Christina Barcelona
• Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
• Kate Winslet, The Reader

Best Supporting Actor

• Josh Brolin, Milk
• Robert Downey, Jr., Tropic Thunder
• Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
• Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
• Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire

Best Original Screenplay

• Woody Allen, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
• Dustin Lance Black, Milk
• Jenny Lumet, Rachel Getting Married
• Tom McCarthy, The Visitor
• Robert Siegel, The Wrestler

Best Adapted Screenplay

• Simon Beaufoy, Slumdog Millionaire
• Peter Morgan, Frost/Nixon
• Christopher Nolan and Jonathan Nolan, The Dark Knight
• Eric Roth, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• John Patrick Shanley, Doubt

Total Nominations

1. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, 9
2. Slumdog Millionaire, 8
3. Frost/Nixon, Milk 6
4. Doubt, The Dark Knight, 5

MOVIE REVIEW: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

David Fincher's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is one of the leading contenders for the Best Picture of the year but has been receiving wild ecstatic raves and vicious pans from the filmerati.

The Oscar nominations come out on Thursday January 24th and most Oscarologists expect "Ben Button" to be in the elite group of Best Picture nominees, and may have the most nominations overall.

As the above pictures indicate, the film stars Oscar winner (The Aviator) Cate Blanchett and (2-time) World's Sexiest Man Brad Pitt and was written by Oscar-winner Eric Roth (Forrest Gump). Oscar winner Tilda Swinton (Michael Clayton) also has a pivotal role. However, the real star of the film is the stunning visual effects that depict the reverse-aging of Brad Pitt's character Benjamin Button as well as the forward-aging of Cate Blanchett's Daisy.

This is clearly film-making at a very high level, with the art direction, cinematography and score particularly notable. The producers of this film often work with Steven Spielberg and clearly they intended The Curious Case of Benjamin Button to have the magic of some of his classic films and/or Forrest Gump. Sadly, "Ben Button" does not reach those heights; it is a very good, but not great film.

The central conceit of the film, that someone would be born very old and physically age in reverse actually is quite effective. This plot device actually provokes some serious ruminations on the nature of life by the viewer which is often the hallmark of great art. Interestingly, despite having a structural lack of suspense (we know that Benjamin Button is going to have to "grow young and die") Eric Roth's script does an excellent job of still providing twists and turns that surprise and delight.

Both Blanchett and Pitt give spellbinding performances. Pitt, especially astounds in his physical ability to embody younger and younger versions of himself. However, I was also struck by Blanchett's even more difficult (albeit more traditional) performance that contains more physically humbling scenes. Taraji P. Henson plays Brad Pitt's adoptive mother as one of several "magic negroes" that mar the film's emotional impact. The shooting of the film in and around New Orleans, Louisiana does provide an interesting emotional frisson as well as the inclusion of the somewhat controversial Hurricane Katrina sub-plot featuring Julia Ormond.

Overall, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is one of the best films of the year; with outstanding performances by both lead actors and an intriguing plot devices that provides an opportunity for self-reflection.

Running Time: 2 hours, 46 minutes, MPAA Rating: PG-13.

OVERALL GRADE: B+/A-.

ACTING: A.
IMAGERY: A-.
PLOT: B+.
IMPACT: B+.

REVIEW: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Mad Professah saw Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull at the Edwards Renaissance 14 in Alhambra on Memorial Day.

The movie is the fourth episode in a series that started with Raiders of the Lost Ark in 1981, followed by Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989).

It's hard to decide how to review these "tent pole" summer blockbusters: dispassionately as films or simply as entertainment vehicles. However, it seems to me that if the film is "good" then it should be able to cause the viewer to suspend disbelief long enough to enjoy the film on multiple levels.

As my reviews for Iron Man (B+) and Prince Caspian (B-) illustrate, different summer blockbusters have different levels of success in this area of depicting implausibility.

The new Indiana Jones film falls somewhere between these two films in this regard. It does not start well, by having Indiana Jones survive being proximal to a nuclear blast as well as vastly over-estimating the power of magnetic fields.

However, as with most films that are not plot-driven, casting is exceedingly important in the success of Indiana Jones 4. Harrison Ford reprises his role well, although the standout performances are by Cate Blanchett as the villain and Shia LaBeouf as the sidekick.
The direction is exceedingly slick and the plot is preposterous, but overall the film ends up being a relatively pleasant diversion.

GRADE: B.

PREVIEW: Elizabeth The Golden Age

I am so looking forward to this movie!

REVIEW: Babel

I finally got around to seeing Babel this long weekend. It was the last of the Best Picture nominees that I saw and this may have influenced my impressions of the film. I am generally a fan of the director Alejandro González Iñárritu's work. I loved his films Amores Perros and 21 Grams, which were also both written by Guillermo Arriaga and directed and produced by González Iñárritu.

Babel has the now-familiar structure of seemingly unrelated stories following a particular theme with characters whose relatedness the audience has to figure out during the course of the film.

The four stories are: a member of a bereaved American couple (played by Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett)visiting Morocco gets hit by a stray bullet, two young Moroccan brothers who try to alleviate their goat tending boredom by firing a long range rifle at a faraway tourist bus, a deaf-mute Japanese teenaged girl (played by Best Supporting Actress nominee Rinko Kicuchi) who is estranged from her recently widowed father and desperately seeking intimate (male) attention from strangers in Tokyo and two very young white children who live in San Diego go on a road trip with their Mexican nanny/housekeeper (played by Best Supporting Actress nominee Adriana Barraza) to her son's wedding across the border in Tijuana with her irresponsible nephew (played by hottie and González Iñárritu favorite Gael Garcia Bernal) at the wheel.

As you may have noticed, one of these stories is not like the other: the Japanese teen angst story. The other arcs follow the travails of innocents who are put into mortal peril due to circumstances beyond their control (a stray bullet through the tour bus window hits Cate Blanchett's character, the two boys are caught up in an anti-terrorist militaristic response by the investigating Moroccan authorities and the two kids and caregiver are abandoned in the deadly Mexican desert due to some questionable behavior by Garcia Bernal's character. I am pretty sure the fourth story was included so that the director and writer could include Japanese sign-language as a mode of communication displayed in the film, enhancing it's multicultural bona fides by supplementing the more prosaic languages of (American) English, Spanish, Japanese and Arabic which had already been included.

The score by Gustavo Santaolalla (Best Score Oscar for Brokeback Mountain) is quite interesting and inventive with a sonic palette which includes Mexican hip-hop, Japanese disco, Moroccan vocal pieces as well as his own signature evocative string arrangements. I particularly mention the music because there are many significant scenes of the film without dialogue where the score communicates the emotion of the moment.

All in all, though it's hard to say what Babel means in the end. I believe the inclusion of the fourth story dilutes the narrative impact of the film. I sort of agree with what one wag said on public radio: "Babel should get an award for most directing in a film" (and that's not really a compliment).

GRADE: B+.

2007 Oscars Predictions

MadProfessah's Oscar nomination prediction accuracy rate in the Top 8 categories (Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Original Screenplay and Adapted Screenplay) was an impressive 29 out of 40, or 72.5%. EW.com has a very cool Flash-powered game where you can enter EW's Oscars prediction contest. The awards ceremony will be hosted by Ellen Degeneres and broadcast next Sunday February 25th at 5pm from The Kodak Theater in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles.

Best Picture











Of course the major story here is what I like to call in my classes the Wideman question, i.e. "What's not here?" or "What's left out?" The answer is Dreamgirls! In my opinion, it was the Best Picture of the Year. Although I have seen a lot of movies in the last year, I only saw Babel and Letters from Iwo Jima in the last week but I can't say that I was overly impressed with either of these films enough to endorse their Best Picture worthiness.

If I go with the film that I enjoyed the most while watching it I would have to vote for Little Miss Sunshine though I must admit that I felt that there were moments of "Damn! That's good film making" while watching The Departed (for the intricacy of William Monahan's script), Babel (for the impact of Gustavo Santolalla's heart-tugging score) and The Queen (for the amazing Helen Mirren's transformation into Queen Elizabeth II). Sadly, I felt no transcendent moments while watching Letters from Iwo Jima ("Oscar voters snubbed Dreamgirls for this?" this weekend.

Anyway, many Oscar prognosticators have forecast a win by Babel for Best Picture on Sunday while others have gone for The Departed or Little Miss Sunshine. Anyway, Oscar ballots had to be in by Tuesday February 20th. Here are my picks:

SHOULD WIN: Little Miss Sunshine
WILL WIN: The Departed

Best Director

• Clint Eastwood, Letters from Iwo Jima
• Stephen Frears, The Queen
• Alejandro González Iñárritu, Babel
• Martin Scorsese, The Departed
• Paul Greengrass, United 93
  
  SHOULD WIN: Stephen Frears, The Queen
  WILL WIN: Martin Scorsese, The Departed

Best Actress

• Penelope Cruz, Volver
• Judi Dench, Notes on a Scandal
• Helen Mirren, The Queen
• Meryl Streep, The Devil Wears Prada
• Kate Winslet, Little Children
  
  SHOULD WIN: Helen Mirren, The Queen
  WILL WIN: Helen Mirren, The Queen

Best Actor

• Leonardo Dicaprio, Blood Diamond
• Ryan Gosling, Half Nelson
• Peter O'Toole, Venus
• Will Smith, The Pursuit of Happyness
• Forrest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland
  
  SHOULD WIN: Forrest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland
  WILL WIN: Forrest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland

Best Supporting Actress

• Adriana Barraza, Babel
• Cate Blanchett, Notes on a Scandal
• Abigail Breslin, Little Miss Sunshine
• Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
• Rinko Kicuchi, Babel



SHOULD WIN: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
WILL WIN: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls

Best Supporting Actor

• Alan Arkin, Little Miss Sunshine
• Jackie Early Haley, Little Children
• Djimon Hounsou, Blood Diamond
• Eddie Murphy, Dreamgirls
• Mark Wahlberg, The Departed
  
  SHOULD WIN: Djimon Hounsou, Blood Diamond
  WILL WIN: Eddie Murphy, Dreamgirls

Best Original Screenplay

• Guilllermo Arriaga, Babel
• Iris Yamashita and Paul Haggis, Letters From Iwo Jima
• Peter Morgan, The Queen
• Michael Arndt, Little Miss Sunshine
• Guillermo del Toro, Pan's Labyrinth
  
  SHOULD WIN: Guillermo del Toro, Pan's Labyrinth
  WILL WIN: Michael Arndt, Little Miss Sunshine

Best Adapted Screenplay

• Sacha Baron Cohen and Anthony Hines and Peter Baynham and Dan Mazer and Todd Phillips, Borat Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
• Todd Field and Tom Perrota, Little Children
• Patrick Marber, Notes on a Scandal
• Alfonso Cuarón and Timothy J. Sexton and David Arata and Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby, Children of Men
• William Monahan, The Departed
  
  SHOULD WIN: William Monahan, The Departed
  WILL WIN: William Monahan, The Departed