Each year, once the Academy Award nominations are released, movie critics, fans, news anchors, professors and anyone you can think of give their opinions on who they think will win. Here are some of the major categories with my picks for who should win, who actually will win and who should have some beef for not getting nominated.
Best Supporting Actor: Josh Brolin (“Milk”), Robert Downey Jr. (“Tropic Thunder”), Philip Seymour Hoffman (“Doubt”), Heath Ledger (“The Dark Knight”), Michael Shannon (“Revolutionary Road”)
Supporting actor may be the most interesting category of the awards this year, but it is also the most predictable. No one else will win this award but Heath Ledger.
The last time an actor was nominated posthumously was 1977, when Peter Finch died in January, about a month before he was nominated for “Network”. The second Ledger shows up on screen in “The Dark Knight” you realize that this Joker has all but obliterated Jack Nicholson’s version from “Batman” (1989). This will allow the Academy to award a young, deserving actor whose career and life was cut too short.
The biggest shock of the awards has to be Robert Downey Jr. getting nominated for “Tropic Thunder”. Just like Mickey Rourke, Downey has made a great comeback this year, first with “Iron Man” and now with this nomination.
Josh Brolin brought some depth and humility to his character of Dan White, the man who went on to assassinate Harvey Milk and San Francisco Mayor George Moscone.
Michael Shannon was the lone nominee from “Revolutionary Road”, beating out more high profile actors Leonardo Dicaprio and Kate Winslet. Shannon is only on-screen for about 10 minutes, but his portrayal of a disturbed neighbor serves as the voice of reason in the film.
Who Should/Will Win: The fact that Heath Ledger died last year had some critics wondering, if he was alive, would he still receive this award? The answer is emphatically yes. His turn as the nihilistic, always torturous Joker was simply divine and one of the best performances of this year.
Who Got Snubbed?: For all the tabloid coverage he gets, sometimes people don’t realize how talented Brad Pitt actually is. Throughout his career he has done quality work (“Babel”, “Fight Club”) and in the Coen Brothers dark comedy, “Burn After Reading”, Pitt plays his character perfectly, which is nothing more than a complete imbecile, perfectly. It’s one of the more understated performances of the year and he is by far the funniest actor in the picture.
Best Actress: Anne Hathaway (“Rachel Getting Married”), Angelina Jolie (“Changeling”), Melissa Leo (“Frozen River”), Meryl Streep (“Doubt”), Kate Winslet (“The Reader”)
After winning two Golden Globes for her performances in “The Reader” and “Revolutionary Road,” many felt that the Academy might reward Kate Winslet with two nominations again. Instead they gave her one for her portrayal of Hanna, a former Holocaust camp guard. Her performance is one of the best of the finest this year and may give Winslet her first career win.
There is usually one major nomination each year that gets most people wondering “who is she and what’s that movie?” This year it’s Melissa Leo and “Frozen River”. Leo plays a single mother who gets drawn into a scheme smuggling illegal workers from New York City to Canada to help support her family. She is definitely a long shot to win, but the Academy has surprised people before (Frances McDormand, “Fargo”).
Meryl Streep has been nominated a record 15 times, winning twice, but it has been over 25 years since she won an Oscar.
Anne Hathaway is best known for her roles in mostly lighthearted movies (“The Devil Wears Prada”, “Princess Diaries”), which is why her turn as Kym, a recovering drug addict in “Rachel Getting Married” is so powerful. Released from drug rehab to attend her sisters wedding, Hathaway’s Kym does all she can to wreak havoc on her sister’s big day. The audience finds themselves anxiously wondering if she can redeem herself by the end.
Angelina Jolie fits the old Hollyood-era setting perfectly of Clint Eastwood’s “Changeling.” As a mother who loses her child in 1940’s Los Angeles, her performance is good, but at times very one-dimensional.
Who Should Win: Chances are Melissa Leo will be overlooked on award’s night for a more notable actress like Kate Winslet or Meryl Streep. But in her understated, realistic performance, she captures how life doesn’t always deal you the easiest hand of cards.
Who Will Win: At 33 years old, Kate Winslet has already earned herself six nominations. It’s finally time for her to win one for a great performance in a mediocre film.
Who Got Snubbed?: Sally Hawkins won a Golden Globe for best actress in a comedy or musical for her performance in Mike Leigh’s “Happy Go Lucky”. She was left out here, but easily could have garnered a nomination for her portrayal of the always cheerful, infinitely optimistic Poppy.
Best Supporting Actress: Amy Adams (“Doubt”), Penelope Cruz (“Vicky Cristina Barcelona”), Viola Davis (“Doubt”), Taraji P. Henson (“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”), Marisa Tomei (“The Wrestler”)
By far the strongest acting category this year, the supporting actress nominees feature some powerful, fantastic performances.
Viola Davis displays remarkable restraint and power in her performance as the mother of a student implicated in a sex scandal in “Doubt.” Many times supporting roles are meant to be small, allowing the audience just to see through an open window of a character. Davis fills the small role with complexity and depth and as the film goes on she pours out her heart, revealing the aspirations and desperation any parent would have for their child.
Taraji P. Henson gives a splendid performance as Benjamin Button’s adoptive mother. As her son’s guiding force throughout the movie, she inspires him to see the world and can’t say enough about how truly extraordinary he is. Henson’s genuineness and love is completely believable because of how naturally she slides into her role.
Marissa Tomei charmed everyone’s hearts as the lovable girlfriend in “My Cousin Vinny” for which she won an Oscar for best supporting actress in 1993. She does it once again, only this time as an aging stripper named Cassidy. Tomei’s performance is emotional and sincere, and she seems very comfortable in the role, possibly due to the fact that she and director Darren Aronofsky attended the same Brooklyn high school.
Who Should Win: The warmth and humor of Taraji P. Henson as an adoring mother to her son Benjamin Button is genuine and extremely impressive to watch.
Who Will Win: Marissa Tomei has always been an excellent actress (“In the Bedroom”, “My Cousin Vinny”), and her performance in “The Wrestler” is one of the best of her career.
Who Got Snubbed?: The beautiful Freida Pinto was fantastic in “Slumdog Millionaire” as Jamal’s love interest Latika. The love between the two is the driving force behind the movie, and the actress, who is barely known in the United States, brought some uncompromising vulnerability to one of the most important roles in the film.
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”)
Last year there was no question that Daniel Day Lewis would win the award for his performance in “There Will Be Blood.” This year the race is a bit tighter.
Sean Penn seems to be the favorite here due to the fact that he has won the award before (“Mystic River’” 2003), and his portrayal of San Francisco city supervisor Harvey Milk was pitch perfect. Penn slips into the skin of Milk, channeling his enthusiasm and gentleness, creating an almost mirror image of the real character.
It’s nice to see Richard Jenkins score a nomination for “The Visitor.” The long time character actor has done a wide range of work (“Step Brothers”, “Six Feet Under”) and it’s good to see that the Academy didn’t overlook his performance. It was Jenkins’ first leading role, and his first career nomination. Director Tom McCarthy wrote the role of Walter, a widowed college professor, specifically for Jenkins.
Brad Pitt played Benjamin Button with a little help of Computer Generated Imagery (CGI), but his overall performance was one of the best of his career. Pitt has been nominated before (Best Supporting Actor, “12 Monkeys”, 1994), but never for Best Actor. Pitt brings an unwavering sense of youth, exuberance and thoughtfulness to his character.
Frank Langella won the Tony Award for Best Actor in 2007 for playing Richard Nixon in the stage version of “Frost/Nixon.” His commanding performance was enhanced by the way Langella handled himself off-camera. To help cultivate the loneliness and social awkwardness of Nixon, he kept to himself and didn’t fraternize with his costars.
Mickey Rourke’s comeback should now officially be considered over. With years of drug abuse, boxing, plastic surgery and passing up on some ridiculously good roles (“Pulp Fiction”, “Rain Man”, “The Untouchables”) behind him, Rourke has found himself on the right track. Teaming with director Darren Aronofsky, Rourke literally becomes his character. He takes hold of washed-up 80s wrestler Randy “Ram” Robinson, and while on screen you just can’t take your eyes off Rourke. By voting for Rourke, the Academy proved that Hollywood loves a comeback story. If he wins he’s sure to give one hell of an acceptance speech.
Who Should Win: Everyone loves the underdog, right? Mickey Rourke’s performance coupled with his amazing comeback story makes his turn as Randy “The Ram” Robinson unforgettable.
Who Will Win: It’s hard to distinguish between the real life Harvey Milk and the character Sean Penn brings to the screen. In any other year Penn would be a lock in, but Rourke’s performance stands a dark horse to take the award from him.
Who Got Snubbed?: One of the biggest snubs of all the categories this year has to be Clint Eastwood’s performance in Gran Torino. The National Board of Review named him the Best Actor for his vintage, yet endearing performance. He plays Walt, a Korean War veteran, much like the tough guys he’s played in the past. What’s different about Eastwood’s portrayal of Walt is that although he is extremely backwards in his treatment of the people around him as a viewer your emotions seem to rise and fall with him in this simple story of redemption and doing what’s right.
Best Picture: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Frost/Nixon”, “Milk”, “The Reader”, “Slumdog Millionaire”
Coming into the Academy Awards, four nominees seem to be a lock for a nomination. “Milk,” “Slumdog Millionaire,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” and “Frost/Nixon” have all received praise from critics and were all nominated for best picture by the Producer’s Guild of America and the Golden Globes, and were nominated for various other awards.
Many felt that the year’s biggest and most critically acclaimed film, “The Dark Knight,” would defy the odds and get a nomination from the Academy. But they decided to play it safe this year, awarding the fifth nomination to the Holocaust story “The Reader.”
“Slumdog Millionaire” is the film with the most widespread appeal of any of the nominees. Directed masterfully by Danny Boyle, the film is both a hit with regular folks and critics alike. Dev Patel as Jamal gives a grossly underrated performance as he searches for his lost love. It’s a story of vicious violence and horrifying poverty, but at the same time is really more of an alluring fable of love defying all.
Like “Slumdog Millionaire,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” is another film about a decent, young man searching for his life’s love. The film is stylistically unbelievable, but too much like “Forrest Gump,” which is understandable since screenwriter Eric Roth wrote both.
Ron Howard’s political drama “Frost/Nixon” is a fine film and a serviceable adaptation of Peter Morgan’s stage play. Howard doesn’t try to do too much with the film, he is extremely adept at allowing his actors to take hold of the screen and flesh out their own characters.
“Milk” has a superb supporting cast (Emile Hirsch, James Franco) and marvelous direction from Gus Van Sant. This portraiture of Harvey Milk and the political landscape of 1970s San Francisco is one of the finest biographical films you will see.
Who Should Win: “Slumdog Millionaire.” Danny Boyle’s wondrous love story takes you on a crash course through India and the city of Mumbai. The acting is top notch, the music perfect and no film this year is better. “Slumdog Millionaire” has everything going for it. A darling with both the masses and critics, it has already won big at the Golden Globes, as well as winning best picture from the Producer’s Guild of America (PGA) and the Screen Actors’ Guild of America (SAG).
Who Was Snubbed?: The Academy chose to nominate “The Reader” because, they can’t find it within themselves to overlook a film about the Holocaust. But they made a grave mistake by failing to nominate “The Dark Knight.” After scoring a best picture nomination from the PGA, it looked as if Christopher Nolan’s superhero epic would get the Academy’s recognition.
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