Best Actor
Who will win: Jean Dujardin (The Artist)
Before the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards, this category looked like a fight between Dujardin and George Clooney (The Descendants). Once the SAG went to the effervescent Frenchmen, the race appeared to be closing in on an early end. Neither Brad Pitt (Moneyball) nor Clooney gave their best performance in their respective films. Demian Bichir is extremely lucky to have even been nominated, having starred in a film (A Better Life) most won’t have heard of, let alone seen. Gary Oldman’s nomination is much deserved, but it’s very unlikely that he’ll be able to make up all the lost ground necessary to pull off an upset. And who’s on the outside looking in? Michael Shannon (Take Shelter), Michael Fassbender (Shame), and Ryan Gosling (Drive).
Who deserves to win: Viggo Mortensen (A Dangerous Method)
This film should have been nominated for several awards. Mortensen’s portrayal of the enigmatic Freud completely steals the show. His presence is both demanding and subtle, and leaves one wanting to know Freud in real life. A Dangerous Method was underrated in many ways, but largely for Mortensen’s spectacular performance.
—Alex
Who deserves to win: Michael Fassbender (Shame)
In many ways, the Academy members are very much like small children. Nothing exhibits this tendency better than the members’ deep-seated aversion to the NC-17 rating. Fassbender had a better year than any other male actor (sorry Gosling), and in Shame he didn’t just bear his body, but also his soul. Having given the most courageous performance of 2011, Fassbender’s exclusion from even a nomination is nothing less than injustice incarnate.
—Chris
Best Actress
Who will win: Viola Davis (The Help)
While the Best Actor category remains up for grabs, the Best Actress category is just as contentious, Davis could easily lose to Meryl Streep, whose portrayal of Britain’s first female prime minister won her the Golden Globe. With Davis earning a SAG award for her performance, she nevertheless is still likely to maintain her edge all the way to Oscar night. Michelle Williams has too much ill-will directed at her in the role to mount a real challenge to the two front-runners, as does Glenn Close. Rooney Mara, like Bichir in the male category, is simply lucky to have been nominated.
Who deserves to win: Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)
Mara’s character is unlike any we have seen on the big screen, She’s a dynamic character for sure, and her suitable strange character in Dragon Tattoo added enormously to the story’s intensity. You may find yourself fascinated by her, yet curious about her bizarre nature. She leaves much to the imagination; at once you may want to know more about her, despite the frightening demeanor she evokes.
—Alex
Who deserves to win: Kirsten Dunst/Brit Marling
While I have nothing unpleasant to say about the nominees, I cannot help but feel pained by the exclusion of these two from Oscar recognition. Dunst at least picked up the Best Actress at Cannes for the mastery with which she maintained her character’s volatile cocktail of emotions. Marling has been overlooked, despite being the most electrifying new talent of last year.
—Chris
Best Writing: Original
Who will win: Midnight in Paris
Woody Allen should easily be the frontrunner for this category, although he has refused to show up to any of the ceremonies. Midnight in Paris is more reminiscent of his earlier work, from which he has strayed in his most recent screenplays. Like most of the categories, the award-winning criteria is unclear. But the word that resonates here is “original”, which captures the essence of Midnight in Paris. It is groundbreaking in its conception, and the script brings this out beautifully. Let’s not pretend we personally knew any of the literary figures depicted in the movie, but we can safely say the script gave us a good taste of what they were like.
Who deserves to win: Midnight in Paris
Allen serves a profoundly pertinent message in a subtle way, and he does so with success. The romanticization of a time prior to the high-tech world in which we live today is a common trope, and Allen exploits our yearning for a return to the simplicity of the past. He shows us how this has always been and will always be the attitude towards modernity, and he depicts it beautifully.
—Alex
Who deserves to win: Another Earth
Intelligent teen with bright future makes an ill-fated decision, sees astronomical anomaly, ruins her life. From this star-crossed origin springs forth a poignant, challenging, and rewarding story, one that binds a pained, gravitational interplay of two suffering souls with fundamental questions of free will and moral redemption. Plus it has a killer closing shot. What more could a cinephile ask?
—Chris
Best Writing: Adapted
Who will win: Moneyball
The adapted screenplay race is a neck-to-neck competition between The Descendants and Moneyball, and we’re leaning towards the latter partly due to Sorkin’s name, and partly due to intuition, but a win here by The Descendants would surprise no one. What would be surprising is the award going to The Ides of March or Hugo, the former being fortunate to have made it this far, and the latter likely riding its strength elsewhere. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a classic spy tale full of nuanced and rewarding twists and turns, but it is precisely its labyrinthine structure that will turn off enough voters to deny it a win.
Who deserves to win: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2
Full disclosure: I am not a fanatical Harry Potter devotee. However, I did grow up with the books/movies, as did most students our age. After over a decade of Harry Potter films, it would be nice for the Academy to recognize its monumental success. If this is too idealistic, A Dangerous Method should have been nominated as well.
—Alex
Who deserves to win: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Spy tales are meant to be labyrinthine, Cold War antics never go down smooth, and Tinker Tailor really ought to win this category. Its screenplay maintained a riveting atmosphere of constant antagonism and tension, and the result is a form of pure thrill that penetrates with a determinism none of the other nominees can rival. The unity in form of The Descendants covers a shallower range of emotions, and Moneyball offers neither style nor substance.
—Alex
Best Director
Who will win: Michel Hazanavicius (The Artist)
As the winner of the Directors Guild of America Award, Hazanavicius has this category locked in; the history of these two awards are a near perfect mirror, and this year is likely not contentious enough to buck the trend. It’s a shame, because Hazanavicius is the only one of the five that cannot be called a proper auteur. The strongest challenger is Martin Scorsese, but something like Hugo just doesn’t seem to have the proper gravitas, given his monumental bo
dy of work. The Academy likes Alexander Payne, and likes Woody Allen even more, but neither are in a position to foil Hazanavicius. Opinions on Terrence Malick’s film are simply too divided; his nomination is to recognize his courage in making something like The Tree of Life, but not for the film itself.
Who deserves to win: Hazanavicius (The Artist)
While I’m unconvinced that The Artist should win any other award of the night, Hazanavicius deserves this one. The film doesn’t stand out as best picture of the year, but it undoubtedly required a whole lot of talent to direct. Dujardin won Best Actor at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, although the praise should be more directed at Hazanavicius. It takes a lot of courage directing a movie without speech, and Hazanavicius deserves this recognition for achieving it with charm and elegance.
—Alex
Who deserves to win: Terence Malick (The Tree of Life)
While The Tree of Life is the most polarizing of the films helmed by these five, it’s also the best example of a work that embodies its director’s distinct artistry. Few other films in 2011 could compete with the monumentality and totality of Malick’s vision, and those that do don’t hold the Palme d’Or. If the only criterion for this category was talent, then the statue would be Malick’s.
—Chris
Best Picture
Who will win: The Artist
The Descendants and The Artist are the top contenders, no doubt, and we favour The Artist, for its tribute to old Hollywood. The story is charming, the setting is timeless, it’s silent … and black and white. The Academy loves films that take risks, especially when they work. Does The Artist deserve the win solely due to this risk factor alone? Probably not. However, the film has received positive acclaim from critics and common folk alike. Its silent, black and white nature does not take anything away from the movie, nor does it add to it. Perhaps that’s a good thing; being silent and colourless is not its central feature. It’s not too complicated; in fact, the plot couldn’t be more straightforward. This charming simplicity, even in the absence of dialogue and colour, is why The Artist will win.
Who deserves to win: Midnight in Paris
In case you can’t tell, I fell in love with this movie. It’s a nostalgic masterpiece. Though none of the nominated movies are incredibly deserving of the award, Midnight in Paris is the one that comes closest. The concept is unique and everything about the film is beautifully crafted, with particular mention to the ideal depiction of certain literary geniuses of the 1920s. Using charming Paris as its backdrop doesn’t hurt either. This film should win for its innovative idea, brought completely to life and flawlessly executed.
—Alex
Who should win: Another Earth
What does “Best Picture” mean? And has anyone posed this question to the Academy? More often than not, they’ve defined best as “what is most suited to our particular taste,” to the detriment of many worthy films (The Social Network anyone?) Another Earth was exceedingly underrated and underviewed, yet one struggles to find a film with more philosophical depth and artistic virtuosity. The day that a Sundance darling wins in the big leagues is the day Hell freezes over. But one can dream.
—Chris
