And the Academy Award goes to...-2012 Edition

For the second year in a row,  I have managed to see all nine of the Best Picture nominees before the Oscars telecast.  In doing so, I feel somewhat qualified to offer an opinion and my humble selections of who should take home Oscar gold tonight.  It was an odd year for movies and there were several films that offered similar stories.  Overall, it was a fun year to watch and the show tonight will hopefully not disappoint.  If it does, there is always Twitter and 140 character outbursts that will likely happen no matter what. 

Here we go...

I'll start with the screenplays since without one, you can't necessarily have a movie. 

Best Adapted Screenplay- I think this will be one of the awards that goes to The Descendants.  The story was fantastic but one of the driving things that kept this movie in check was the dialogue.  Hugo could upset and take this category but I am not sure how keen Oscar is going to be on Scorsese venturing away from being Scorsese.  The long shot-Moneyball (no pun intended)

Best Original Screenplay- Somehow, and I truly do not understand it to say the least, this will go to The Artist.  If anyone can explain how a silent film wins a screenplay award, they will have the honor of shining Billy Crystal's dome during commercial breaks. I would like to see Midnight in Paris take this but think that Woody thumbed his nose at Hollywood this year and they will not take kindly.  The long shot-Margin Call

Best Original Score-This is one of the no-brainer picks for the night and will definitely go to The Artist, and rightfully so.  Music drove the film and this will be a deserved pick.  The long shot-Hugo

Best Animated Feature Film-  I am not a fan of this category in the least but did see a few.  Based on what I saw and the buzz, I think this will go to Rango.  Not going to pick a long shot because I think this category was added to make the broadcast longer. 

Now for some of the exciting awards...sorry if you were looking for the make-up or costume picks.  You must have me confused with someone else...

Best Supporting Actor-I start with this one because it is another of the locks for the ceremony tonight.  Christopher Plummer will win for his fantastic role in Beginners.  He has won the Golden Globe, the Screen Actor, and the Spirit Award already and Oscar should follow suit.  If I had to pick, I would say the long shot would be Jonah Hill for Moneyball.

Best Supporting Actress-Not a stone-cold lock, but I am going to be surprised if Octavia Spencer does not win for her role in The Help.  She was perfect for the role and she executed.  She also lent the film comedic relief, making her a little more memorable than her counterpart nominee Jessica Chastain.  The long shot- Melissa McCarthy for Bridesmaids.

Best Actor-I am going to split the difference between the Golden Globes and the Screen Actors and go with George Clooney in The Descendants.  I loved his role in this and in The Ides of March and Clooney continues to take chances outside of the box and will hopefully be rewarded.  The long shot- Brad Pitt for Moneyball.

Best Actress-Again, I will split the difference between the Globes and the Actors but side on the latter and say Viola Davis will win for her role in The Help.  I will admit that I only saw her performance, along with Rooney Mara's in Girl with the Dragon Tattoo but Oscar loves Meryl Streep.  Hopefully this year, they get it right.  The long shot-Glenn Close for Albert Nobbs (why? Because you just googled Albert Nobbs)

Best Director-It should be clear where I stand with my winner for Best Picture by saying that I think Alexander Payne should be given the trophy tonight.  Payne has had an already successful career and now more fans of The Descendants are going to go back and watch some of his earlier work.  The long shots-Terrence Malick and Martin Scorsese for Tree of Life and Hugo 


Best Picture- Again, I have seen them all.  I say, without a doubt, it was The Descendants this year.  It wasn't as though I did not like, nor understand why The Artist has received so much praise, but I just think that The Descendants left me the most satisfied as a movie-goer.  Doing that with such an overwhelming subject matter is hard to do and I think the producers, writers, director, and actors did it the best.  For fun, here are my rankings of the nine nominees:

1) The Descendants
2) Moneyball
3) The Help
4) Midnight in Paris
5) The Artist
6) Hugo
7) Tree of Life
8) War Horse
9) Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (still cannot figure out why this was even nominated)


So sit back, grab the popcorn and enjoy the show.  Follow me on Twitter if you dare @CoryWStephens.  I'll be live tweeting my thoughts (as dangerous as that may be) during the show.  Thanks for reading!!