The Academy Awards have recently been an event of dismay among many film critics, myself included. With such wins that occurred last year, especially when compared among the other films in the field, especially the fact that such a film would even be considered (and was) for a best picture nomination, it can cause critics to lose faith in the Academy.
That being said, these awards are the most important in the nation, so I will review the major categories and pick the most likely winner. These are not my favorite picks, rather, but the picks that I feel the Academy will choose.
Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay: A group of very strong films here. The Adapted Screenplay category tends to avoid the hype-machine and produce a legitimate winner... most of the time. Let's go over the nominees:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - This one is iffy. The film has received much critical acclaim, but it's mainly been for other aspects of the film, mainly the makeup (look for a definite win in that category). The Academy tends to shy away from giving wins to big budget releases in this category, especially when they're nominated for so many others.
Doubt - A mid-level contender, but a long-shot to win the award. This film was lead primarily due to the strong performances of the leading cast (Hoffman, Streep), but this could be a wild card.
Frost/Nixon - Another weak contender for the award. There hasn't been much hype around this film, and it relies strongly on the two leading actor performances.
The Reader - A strong candidate. Hare has written mostly for television, but the Academy can give the award to those small longshot films and surprise you. This one could take it.
Slumdog Millionaire - Bet on Beaufoy's adapted screenplay taking the Oscar in this category. Slumdog is up for many awards, but this one is one if it's strongest categories.
Conclusion: It's going to be a toss-up battle between The Reader and Slumdog Millionaire, but I think that the Oscar goes to Slumdog Millionaire.
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