2.2.11

Academy Awards Contest ~ Take Two

Calling all cinephile prognosticators!
The 83rd Annual Oscar Nominations were announced last week, and I figure since it was so much fun last year, why not do another "stab-in-the-dark" contest? Who's got the time to see all these films? Who's got the plain old intuition? Let's see...




If you want in, post your picks as a comment below this post. I'll go first, but I wouldn't recommend following my lead -- I haven't a clue this year.
Good luck to one and all!
And the nominees are:

Best Picture ~

“Black Swan”
“The Fighter”
“Inception”
“The Kids Are All Right ”
“The King’s Speech”
“127 Hours”
“The Social Network”
“Toy Story 3″
“True Grit”
“Winter’s Bone”


Best Direction ~

Darren Aronofsky for “Black Swan”
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen for “True Grit”
David Fincher for “The Social Network”
Tom Hooper for “The King’s Speech”
David O. Russell for “The Fighter”


Actor in a Leading Role ~

Javier Bardem in “Biutiful”
Jeff Bridges in “True Grit”
Jesse Eisenberg in “The Social Network”
James Franco in “127 Hours”
Colin Firth in “The King’s Speech”


Actress in a Leading Role ~

Annette Bening in “The Kids Are All Right”
Nicole Kidman in “Rabbit Hole”
Jennifer Lawrence in “Winter’s Bone”
Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”
Michelle Williams in “Blue Valentine”


Actor in a Supporting Role ~

Christian Bale in “The Fighter”
John Hawkes in “Winter’s Bone”
Jeremy Renner in “The Town”
Mark Ruffalo in “The Kids Are All Right”
Geoffrey Rush in “The King’s Speech”


Actress in a Supporting Role ~

Amy Adams in “The Fighter”
Helena Bonham Carter in “The King’s Speech”
Melissa Leo in “The Fighter”
Hailee Steinfeld in “True Grit”
Jacki Weaver in “Animal Kingdom”


Adapted Screenplay ~

Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy for “127 Hours”
Aaron Sorkin for “The Social Network”
Michael Arndt, story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich for “Toy Story 3″
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen for “True Grit”
Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini for “Winter’s Bone”


Original Screenplay ~

Mike Leigh for “Another Year”
Screenplay by Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson. Story by Keith Dorrington and Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson for “The Fighter”
Christopher Nolan for “Inception”
Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Blumberg for “The Kids Are All Right”
David Seidler for “The King’s Speech”


Animated Feature ~

“How to Train Your Dragon”
“The Illusionist”
“Toy Story 3″


Art Direction ~

“Alice in Wonderland”: Robert Stromberg (Production Design), Karen O’Hara (Set Decoration)
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1″: Stuart Craig (Production Design), Stephenie McMillan (Set Decoration)
“Inception”: Guy Hendrix Dyas (Production Design), Larry Dias and Doug Mowat (Set Decoration)
“The King’s Speech”: Eve Stewart (Production Design), Judy Farr (Set Decoration)
“True Grit”: Jess Gonchor (Production Design), Nancy Haigh (Set Decoration)


Cinematography ~

“Black Swan”: Matthew Libatique
“Inception”: Wally Pfister
“The King’s Speech”: Danny Cohen
“The Social Network”: Jeff Cronenweth
“True Grit”: Roger Deakins


Costume Design ~

“Alice in Wonderland”: Colleen Atwood
“I Am Love”: Antonella Cannarozzi
“The King’s Speech”: Jenny Beavan
“The Tempest”: Sandy Powell
“True Grit”: Mary Zophres


Documentary (Feature) ~

“Exit through the Gift Shop”
“Gasland”
“Inside Job”
“Restrepo”
“Waste Land”


Documentary (Short Subject) ~

“Killing in the Name”
“Poster Girl”
“Strangers No More”
“Sun Come Up”
“The Warriors of Qiugang”


Foreign Language Film ~

“Biutiful”: Mexico
“Dogtooth”: Greece
“In a Better World”: Denmark
“Incendies”: Canada
“Outside the Law (Hors-la-loi)”: Algeria


Music (Original Score) ~

“How to Train Your Dragon”: John Powell
“Inception”: Hans Zimmer
“The King’s Speech”: Alexandre Desplat
“127 Hours”: A.R. Rahman
“The Social Network”: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross


Music (Original Song) ~

“Coming Home” from “Country Strong” Music and Lyric by Tom Douglas, Troy Verges and Hillary Lindsey
“I See the Light” from “Tangled” Music by Alan Menken Lyric by Glenn Slater
“If I Rise” from “127 Hours” Music by A.R. Rahman Lyric by Dido and Rollo Armstrong
“We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3″ Music and Lyric by Randy Newman


Visual Effects ~

“Alice in Wonderland”: Ken Ralston, David Schaub, Carey Villegas and Sean Phillips
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1″: Tim Burke, John Richardson, Christian Manz and Nicolas Aithadi
“Hereafter”: Michael Owens, Bryan Grill, Stephan Trojanski and Joe Farrell
“Inception”: Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley and Peter Bebb
“Iron Man 2″: Janek Sirrs, Ben Snow, Ged Wright and Daniel Sudick


Check back some time after the show for the winner; I'll post it in the comments!
Thanks for playing!

11 comments:

  1. Best Picture ~ “The King’s Speech”

    Best Direction ~ David Fincher for “The Social Network”

    Actor in a Leading Role ~ Javier Bardem in “Biutiful”

    Actress in a Leading Role ~ Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”

    Actor in a Supporting Role ~ Christian Bale in “The Fighter”

    Actress in a Supporting Role ~ Amy Adams in “The Fighter”

    Adapted Screenplay ~ Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy for “127 Hours”

    Original Screenplay ~ David Seidler for “The King’s Speech”

    Animated Feature ~ “Toy Story 3″

    Art Direction ~ “Inception”: Guy Hendrix Dyas (Production Design), Larry Dias and Doug Mowat (Set Decoration)

    Cinematography ~ “Inception”: Wally Pfister

    Costume Design ~ “I Am Love”: Antonella Cannarozzi

    Documentary (Feature) ~ “Restrepo”

    Documentary (Short Subject) ~ “The Warriors of Qiugang”

    Foreign Language Film ~ “Biutiful”: Mexico

    Music (Original Score) ~ “The Social Network”: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross

    Music (Original Song) ~ “We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3″ Music and Lyric by Randy Newman

    Visual Effects ~ “Inception”: Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley and Peter Bebb

    ReplyDelete
  2. Best Picture ~
    “The King’s Speech”

    Best Direction ~
    Darren Aronofsky for “Black Swan”

    Actor in a Leading Role ~
    Colin Firth in “The King’s Speech”

    Actress in a Leading Role ~
    Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”

    Actor in a Supporting Role ~
    Christian Bale in “The Fighter”

    Actress in a Supporting Role ~
    Jacki Weaver in “Animal Kingdom”

    Adapted Screenplay ~
    Joel Coen and Ethan Coen for “True Grit”

    Original Screenplay ~
    Screenplay by Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson. Story by Keith Dorrington and Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson for “The Fighter”

    Animated Feature ~
    “Toy Story 3″

    Art Direction ~
    “Alice in Wonderland”: Robert Stromberg (Production Design), Karen O’Hara (Set Decoration)

    Cinematography ~
    “Black Swan”: Matthew Libatique

    Costume Design ~
    “Alice in Wonderland”: Colleen Atwood

    Documentary (Feature) ~

    “Exit through the Gift Shop”
    “Inside Job”

    Documentary (Short Subject) ~
    “The Warriors of Qiugang”

    Foreign Language Film ~
    “Dogtooth”: Greece

    Music (Original Score) ~
    “How to Train Your Dragon”: John Powell

    Music (Original Song) ~
    “I See the Light” from “Tangled” Music by Alan Menken Lyric by Glenn Slater

    Visual Effects ~
    “Alice in Wonderland”: Ken Ralston, David Schaub, Carey Villegas and Sean Phillips

    ReplyDelete
  3. So which one of us wins our money back?

    ReplyDelete
  4. Best Picture ~
    “Black Swan”

    Best Direction ~
    Darren Aronofsky for “Black Swan”

    Actor in a Leading Role ~
    Colin Firth in “The King’s Speech”

    Actress in a Leading Role ~
    Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”

    Actor in a Supporting Role ~
    Christian Bale in “The Fighter”

    Actress in a Supporting Role ~
    Helena Bonham Carter in “The King’s Speech”

    Adapted Screenplay ~
    Aaron Sorkin for “The Social Network”

    Original Screenplay ~
    Christopher Nolan for “Inception”

    Animated Feature ~
    “Toy Story 3″

    Art Direction ~
    “Alice in Wonderland”: Robert Stromberg (Production Design), Karen O’Hara (Set Decoration)

    Cinematography ~
    “True Grit”: Roger Deakins

    Costume Design ~
    “Alice in Wonderland”: Colleen Atwood

    Documentary (Feature) ~
    “Exit through the Gift Shop”

    Documentary (Short Subject) ~
    “The Warriors of Qiugang”

    Foreign Language Film ~
    “Dogtooth”: Greece

    Music (Original Score) ~
    “The Social Network”: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross

    Music (Original Song) ~
    “We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3″ Music and Lyric by Randy Newman

    Visual Effects ~
    “Inception”: Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley and Peter Bebb

    ReplyDelete
  5. Ah, sorry Mo. Now the competition is heating up a wee bit, so I can't declare you the winner just yet. Stay-tuned. Sunday's the night!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Rudy, is it safe to say that you liked "Black Swan"?

    ReplyDelete
  7. Best Picture ~
    “True Grit”

    Best Direction ~
    Joel Coen and Ethan Coen for “True Grit”

    Actor in a Leading Role ~
    Colin Firth in “The King’s Speech”

    Actress in a Leading Role ~
    Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”

    Actor in a Supporting Role ~
    Christian Bale in “The Fighter”

    Actress in a Supporting Role ~
    Hailee Steinfeld in “True Grit”

    Adapted Screenplay ~
    Michael Arndt, story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich for “Toy Story 3″

    Original Screenplay ~
    David Seidler for “The King’s Speech”

    Animated Feature ~
    “Toy Story 3″

    Art Direction ~
    “True Grit”: Jess Gonchor (Production Design), Nancy Haigh (Set Decoration)

    Cinematography ~
    “Black Swan”: Matthew Libatique

    Costume Design ~
    “True Grit”: Mary Zophres

    Documentary (Feature) ~
    “Restrepo”

    Documentary (Short Subject) ~
    “The Warriors of Qiugang”

    Foreign Language Film ~
    “In a Better World”: Denmark

    Music (Original Score) ~
    “Inception”: Hans Zimmer

    Music (Original Song) ~
    “We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3″ Music and Lyric by Randy Newman

    Visual Effects ~
    “Alice in Wonderland”: Ken Ralston, David Schaub, Carey Villegas and Sean Phillips

    ReplyDelete
  8. posted on behalf of Tina Tank / TT / Yiayia ~

    Best Picture ~

    “The King’s Speech”

    Best Direction ~

    David Fincher for “The Social Network”

    Actor in a Leading Role ~

    Colin Firth in “The King’s Speech”

    Actress in a Leading Role ~

    Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”

    Actor in a Supporting Role ~

    Christian Bale in “The Fighter”

    Actress in a Supporting Role ~

    Melissa Leo in “The Fighter”

    Adapted Screenplay ~

    Aaron Sorkin for “The Social Network”

    Original Screenplay ~

    Christopher Nolan for “Inception”

    Animated Feature ~

    “Toy Story 3″

    Art Direction ~

    “Alice in Wonderland”: Robert Stromberg (Production Design), Karen O’Hara (Set Decoration)

    Cinematography ~

    “The King’s Speech”: Danny Cohen

    Costume Design ~

    “Alice in Wonderland”: Colleen Atwood

    Documentary (Feature) ~

    “Waste Land”

    Documentary (Short Subject) ~

    “Poster Girl”

    Foreign Language Film ~

    “Dogtooth”: Greece

    Music (Original Score) ~

    “The Social Network”: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross

    Music (Original Song) ~

    “We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3″ Music and Lyric by Randy Newman

    Visual Effects ~

    “Inception”: Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley and Peter Bebb

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thank you for your participation, y'all. After the handing out of statuettes last night, I'm pleased to announce the results of the mini-Oscar competition -- small but vibrant competition, regular-sized Oscars:

    This way everyone holds a title until next year.

    at 4th Runner-Up:
    Chuck Navyac of Charm City
    7 / 18 possible picks - a sensible stab

    3rd Runner-Up:
    Matt "Mo" Gerhardt of East Lansing City
    7.5* / 18 possible picks - a stab and a half!

    *Mo, you left two picks for Documentray Feature, one of which was a winner, so I awarded 1/2 pt. for intuitive inclusion. Tricky!

    2nd Runner-Up:
    Alex "The Bracketeer" Tank of Athens Town
    9 / 18 possible - solidly mediocre!

    at Runner-Up:
    Rudy McDaniel of Central Oviedo Land
    10 / 18 - a solid effort, Teach!

    and the Winner is:
    Tina "Mom - YiaYia" Tank of Traverse the City
    12 / 18 possible Oscar picks - Champion!

    Congratulations, Mom! You did it!
    We've discussed the prize, and it's in the works!

    Thanks to all for playing. Next year, I'll have watched a few more of these before competition time, and then we might just have to "make it interesting", eh?

    Cheers -- A.T.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Congratulation Momma Tank! Maybe if the contest was to pick who we thought would pick the most correct between us, I would have won ;) I think I'm on to something with this pick two movies thing. Had I done that for all categories and had one of the two correct, my .5 totals would have added up to a better score than what I finished with...ah yes, strategy my friends.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Amicus TC is sincerely regretful for running into an entry glitch. Actually, Amicus had a dilemma caused by the Academy's inexcusable failure to nominate "Tales of Skank City", an indy featuring one C. Sheen, a lack of character actor.

    Also, Amicus assumes all involved are eagerly following the pending change of reference of the "Red Carpet" to the "Mammary Promenade".

    Auf Wiedersehen und gesund zu alles

    ReplyDelete

What say you?