And the Nominees Aren’t
With the Academy Awards looming over us like a giant naked gold man, the biggest question on our minds right now is: remember when Steve Martin used to be funny? The opening of each envelope will create as much debate as it will provide answers. (“Did Avatar really deserve to win over the Hurt Locker?” for example.) While I made my predictions on who will win (as well as who should win) in this very space a few weeks ago, I’m going to take the time to discuss those who should have been nominated but weren’t. Yes, today I look at the dreaded…OSCAR SNUB.
Best Picture
On the one hand, you shouldn’t be surprised that raunchy comedy the Hangover was left off the list, but at the same time, with ten nominees instead of the usual five, it’s like, “dude…where’s the Hangover?” The film was hilariously brilliant and I don’t think I’ve ever laughed that hard at a movie since my Grandpa took me to see Airplane! much to my parents’ chagrin. Director Todd Phillips crafted a raucous – and, most importantly, unpredictable – romp that makes Bachelor Party seem like an episode of Little House on the Prairie. The pic also netted itself a number of awards, including the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical. So an Oscar nom here wouldn’t have been out of the question. Not only that, but if District 9 can snag one, why not a movie featuring a naked Asian man popping out of a trunk? Also left out – Invictus, the Clint Eastwood-directed docudrama featuring Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela. Some sci-fi fans are bemoaning the omission of Star Trek, but while I absolutely loved the movie, it was by no means an absolutely perfect flick and, indeed, had some pretty gaping plothole flaws. Great, fun flick, but not Best Picture material.
Best Actor
Can someone give me a damn good reason why Brad Pitt didn’t get an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Lt. Aldo Raine in Inglourious Basterds. Pitt is every bit as deserving as nominated co-star Christoph Walz. Pitt’s first speech to his men laying out his unit’s mission (“We’re gonna be doin’ one thing and one thing only: killin’ Nazis.”) is a movie classic, as is the one of him trying to pass for a native Italian…with a distinct Smoky Mountain accent. Unfortunately, I think Pitt’s performance was outshone by Walz (who not only deserves his nomination but deserves the Oscar outright, but I still think the Academy made a mistake in overlooking him.
Best Actress
One day, I’m going to get financing for a movie called the Yellow Pages, which is nothing more than Meryl Streep sitting on a stool and reading from the phone book. Then she’ll get nominated. But I digress. I was a little surprised that Nine’s Marion Cotillard, who won for La Vie en Rose was left off, but the movie itself was a box office flop and garnered little attention from the Academy. This year’s Best Actress category is really tight and each woman is pretty deserving of being up there, including the aforementioned Ms. Streep.
Best Supporting Actor
Doesn’t really matter, because Christoph Walz is walking away with this one. And if you’ve seen Inglourious Basterds, you’d know why. Although as I mentioned earlier, you could make a case for Bumblebee in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.
Best Supporting Actress
Very shocked that both of Basterds’ ladies – Melanie Laurent and Diane Kruger – came up empty. While most Oscar-watchers are up in arms over the absence of Kruger on the ballot, they overlook Laurent’s haunting performance as a young Jewish girl who watched her entire family murdered by Walz’s Landa. As the proprietiess of the movie theater where the climax of the movie takes place, her message to the Nazis during her final act of revenge is incredibly gripping and that image will stay with you for a long, long time.
Who will win? Who will lose? Who will make jackasses out of themselves in front of a worldwide audience? We’ll soon find out. And please join us here on the Daily Lounge at 8pm EST when the big show starts for our liveblog of the event! Can’t wait to see you all here! –Ron Motta
