Predict the Oscars 2014

Scott Hardie | January 17, 2014
Let's do this thing!

A few thoughts on the nominations:
- No makeup and hairstyling for American Hustle?
- Meryl Streep, again? Every year, I think the Academy is finally going to get tired of automatically nominating her even though none of them saw her latest movie, and every year, they do it again.
- The Croods is proof that the Best Animated Feature Oscar is an embarrassment and needs to go away.
- Pixar's standard annual nomination is almost a given. That Monsters University was passed over (in favor of The Croods for crying out loud) signals that its reputation is in the same gutter as Cars 2.
- Yay for Gravity! It's my personal favorite among the Best Picture nominees, and it has a chance. The gap between big blockbusters and little respectable films widens every year, and the Academy's focus on the latter kind every year with snoozy winners like The King's Speech makes them seem less and less relevant. I'm hoping for a Gravity win not just for its own sake, but so the Academy can get (or at least seem) back in step with mainstream America.
- A supporting nom for Benedict Cumberbatch for playing Smaug would have been impossible, as Andy Serkis didn't manage it a decade ago and The Hobbit is much less respected than The Lord of the Rings, but some people still would have cheered. I would have been one of them.
- Good for Barkhad Abdi. I haven't seen Captain Phillips but I've heard great things about his performance.
- If Bruce Dern wins for the little-seen Nebraska over the more widely praised Chiwetel Ejiofor in 12 Years a Slave, will it feel like Alan Arkin beating Eddie Murphy again? Am I wrong to have a problem with the Academy favoring the old white guy over the more deserving young black guy?

Evie Totty | January 20, 2014
I still have to see 12 Years a Slave and Her so I'm not going to vote until I've seen them. The Croods isn't Pixar is it? I don't think they need to get rid of the category because although there are shitty animated films, there's always a gem. I don't think Bruce Dern will win at all. It'll be between a different white guy in a small movie: Matt M and Chiwetel E. Wow didn't realize AH didn't get any noms for their hair and makeup. And I hear August: Osage County is fabulous (I want to see that too :/)

So far my favorite film for an Oscar is probably Gravity as well.

Samir Mehta | January 20, 2014
[hidden by request]

Scott Hardie | January 25, 2014
Perhaps I wasn't clear. I didn't mean that the Academy is wrong to ignore mainstream films in favor of arthouse snoozers. I meant that Hollywood is wrong to produce nothing but such crappy blockbusters that the Oscars can't even pretend to approve of them. Once upon a time, major big-budget films could be intelligent entertainment for grown-ups, reap awards at the end of the year, and still sell tons of tickets. Now the movies have become too dumb and unambitious, and they focus solely on selling tickets. When Argo was being lauded last year, someone pointed out that it's not because Argo is all that great of a movie, it's because Argo the kind of movie that Hollywood used to make all the time and now is like a flower in the desert, among robots bashing each other and supernatural teen romance and superhero movie #50000, and its acclaim is a sign that people who care about movies want more like it. Gravity feels like the best hope of a bridge between today's mega-money blockbusters and the critical acclaim and the awards-season plaudits that we're likely to see for a few more years at least.

Evie Totty | March 2, 2014
I had hoped to see more of the nommed movies before today but alas this is not to be. Now I'm just making some guesses depending on my gut. Good luck everyone!

Scott Hardie | March 2, 2014
And to you! I have just finalized my predictions. As with every year, I'm confident but the margin of error is so close that a single wrong prediction can cost first place, so here's hoping for the best -- and hoping for some deserving Oscar winners.

Evie Totty | March 3, 2014
CRAP I forgot I skipped Best Actor with the intent to come back. I meant to pick Matthew M. Can it be tweaked? lakhdgfkajdkfadfadf that's 9 points!