Hooray for Hollywood. The selection for the 84th Annual Academy Awards will be announced Tuesday, Jan. 24th at 7:30 a.m. Eastern time.
Which movie or movies will be the big winners? In what I feel was a lackluster year at the box office the awards could be spread across several different movies. When all the Oscars are counted, though, I expect to see “The Artist” with the night’s biggest haul.
Here are my picks for the nominees for three of my favorite categories.
Best Picture:
The category selection process has changed once again. Now there are at least five movies nominated and possibly up to 10, but no exact number, making this category hard to predict. I’ve selected eight that may make the list.
“The Artist”
“The Descendants”
“War Horse”
“Hugo”
“The Help”
“Midnight in Paris”
“Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close”
“Moneyball”
“The Tree of Life”
As a baseball fan who read the book some time ago, I’m rooting for “Moneyball.” It was tough topic to bring to the screen. Everyone knows about baseball, but a lot of the behind the scenes stuff isn’t always that exciting. I believe “The Artist” will win, however. It’s bold to bring a silent movie to the screen in 2011, and in this field there are no other great contenders. I feel “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” could be a spoiler
Best Original Screenplay
Michael Hazanavicius, “The Artist”
Woody Allen, “Midnight in Paris”
Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumulo, “Bridesmaids”
Tom McCarthy and Joe Tibani, “Win Win”
Terrance Malick, “The Tree of Life”
Michael Hazanavicius will likely win for “The Artist.” Possible spoiler in Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumulo for “Bridesmaids,” which is getting a lot of buzz for a comedy. I’m rooting for Tom McCarthy and Joe Tibani for their movie “Win Win.”
Best Adapted Screenplay
Nat Faxon, Alexander Payne and Jim Rash, “The Descendants”
Aaron Sorkin and Steven Zallian,”Moneyball”
John Logan, “Hugo”
Tate Taylor, “The Help”
Eric Roth, “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close”
Steven Zaillian, “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo”
Again, I’m rooting for Sorkin and Zallian for “Moneyball.” I thought they did a good job of writing this story for the screen. Also, I’d like to see Zallian get nominated for “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,” though I doubt he’ll be nominated for two movies. I’m a big fan of Payne because he’s from Omaha (as am I), and he won in this category with Jim Taylor for “Sideways” in 2004.
I think “Moneyball” gets the win, with Zallian getting some extra support for Academy members who think “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” should have been nominated.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will announce the winners during the 84th Annual Awards live from the Kodak Theatre on Feb. 26.
Sources:
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scences
Ben Child, “The Artist Leads the Pack Ahead of Oscars Nominations,” The Guardian