The SurlyGurls Predict The Academy Award Winners

The 84th Annual Academy Awards ceremony is all set to run this Sunday and we SurlyGurls are pretty EXCITED! Billy Crystal is back to host, which is a real treat considering Eddie Murphy was originally scheduled to host. Let’s not forget the terrible hosts that have plagued the show over the last couple years! Do you remember how awful Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin were when they hosted!?! On paper they sounded like such an awesome choice, but in reality it was almost unwatchable!!

But, that was years ago and there is no need to focus on that now! Let’s turn our attention to this year and get on to our predictions!! We’ve carefully considered each category and here’s how we think things are going to go down on Sunday night.

Best Picture

Andrea – The Artist – I love this movie! This unique little French film is a delight to watch. It is an uplifting and stylish homage to the early days of Hollywood. Everything about this movie is pure, innocent and full of romance. Again, I loved this movie!! Hands down, ‘The Artist’ is the best film of the year.

Whitney – The Artist – There is no way this won’t win. It’s all anyone is talking about. It’s amazing. It’s silent and in black and white and one of the most talked about films of 2012.

Best Director

Andrea – Michel Hazanavicius – Hazanavicius took a big risk with this picture, but his creativity, skill and direction turned it into one of the best movies of the year. He’s been receiving praise and accolades at every turn and he’s leaving the Kodak Theatre without a statue!

Whitney – Michel Hazanavicius – Another no brainer, really. How can you give the best picture to a movie and then not give the director the award as well? Plus, it takes real talent to bring out the subtle nuances and emotions from actors without any dialogue.

Best Actor

Andrea – Jean Dujardin – His performance is the very foundation of this movie. Dujardin carries the film with body language, facial expressions and his contagious and endearing smile. This truly outstanding performance is visibly richer and more vibrant than any of the other nominations.

Whitney – Jean Dujardin – The man says more with his eyebrows than most actors say in an entire page of dialogue. Brad and George will have to duke it out another time, their good looks and popularity won’t win out this time.

Best Actress

Andrea – Viola Davis – I was routing for Davis to grab the Golden Globe for her exceptional performance, but Meryl Streep nabbed it instead. But, in spite of that fact, I have a feeling that Davis will take home the little gold guy. Also, I really want to see her give the acceptance speech!

Whitney – Meryl Streep – I didn’t see The Iron Lady, and while I am a huge Anglophile, and love (almost) all things to do with Britain, I just have no desire to see it. I would really like to see Viola Davis win this, but how can you beat Ms. Streep?

(read the rest of this entry to find out who we’ve picked to win in the remaining categories…)

Best Supporting Actor

Andrea – Christopher Plummer – I am sticking with my Golden Globe choice! Plummer is going all the away with his role as a recently widowed, terminally ill man who comes out of the closet after his diagnosis. I fully expect Captain Von Trapp to walk away with a statue on Sunday.

Whitney – Christopher Plummer – I got burned on this one at the Golden Globes, so this time I am going to play it safe. Plus, he’s up against Jonah Hill and Nick Nolte. Seriously, Nick freaking Nolte, how did that even happen?

Best Supporting Actress

Andrea – Octavia Spencer – Back when I made my Golden Globe picks I was on the fence between Spencer and who I eventually picked, Shailene Woodley. But Spencer seems to be unstoppable – to date she has won the Critics’ Choice Award, the Golden Globe and a BAFTA Award. I’m betting she will add an Academy Award to that list.

Whitney – Octavia Spencer – I think my girl Octavia will take this one just like she took the Golden Globe. She was definitely the heart and humour of The Help and I think she completely, 100% deserves the Oscar.

Best Animated Feature Film

Andrea – Rango – I’m going to be blunt and say this category is a little underwhelming. I mean, ‘Kung Fu Panda 2’?! Did anyone at all see that!? And no nomination for Tintin!? So, given the choices I’m picking the Johnny Depp lizard picture for the win. It was critically acclaimed and one of the most financially successful animated flicks this year. Easy win.

Whitney – Rango – First of all, who doesn’t like Johnny Depp as a big-talking, bug-eating lizard? Second of all, it’s up against a Shrek spin-0ff, an animated sequel and two films I’ve never even heard of.

Best Foreign Film

Andrea – A Separation – Again, this was my selection for the Golden Globe, and I’m sticking with it! It wins just about every award for which it is nominated; it is also one of the most highly praised films of 2011. The fact ‘A Separation’ is also nominated in the Best Original Screenplay category has to count for something!

Whitney – A Separation – I picked this because the Academy always seems to think that the only foreign films worth watching are ones about war. Especially if that war is in the Middle East. I really want the Canadian film to win, because it’s the only one that I think actually looks entertaining.

Best Original Screenplay

Andrea – Midnight in Paris – Woody Allen took home the Golden Globe and the Writer’s Guild Award for this screenplay. He also holds the record in this category for most nominations with a whopping 14! The last time Allen was awarded one was back in 1986; he’s totally due for another.

Whitney – The Artist – I’m not one for the same movie winning every award it’s nominated for, but this one deserves it.

Best Adapted Screenplay

Andrea – The Descendants – I expected this to win the Golden Globe, but Woody Allen took it. But, now that the two are competing in separate categories, I think Alexander Payne will take it, especially considering he took home the Writer’s Guild Award in this category last week.

Whitney – The Descendants – This is the only category that this film isn’t going up against The Artist – and therefore will take the prize. While this is another one of those movies that I know I should want to see, I just don’t – that doesn’t mean it doesn’t deserve an award.

Best Art Direction

Andrea – Hugo – The visuals in this movie are nothing short of incredible. Also, the detailed and elaborate 3D environments make this movie the frontrunner in the category. I will be shocked if any of the other nominations take it.

Whitney – Hugo – I LOVED this film. It was probably the most visually stunning film I have seen all year. It managed to make me wish I was an orphan living on my own in a Paris train station. The art direction was outstanding.

Best Costume Design

Andrea – The Artist – I love the glamour of old Hollywood, the style and fashion of the 20s and 30s is just great. I equally love when that fashion is beautifully recreated for film. Also, I am so tired of Elizabethan period dramas winning this category! I get it; royalty sported elaborate and intricate wardrobe pieces back in the day!

Whitney – W.E. – The costumes are about the only good thing about this movie.

Best Original Song

Andrea – Man or Muppet, The Muppets – This may be Bret McKenzie’s first Oscar nomination, but he’s no stranger to awards shows. He has won a Grammy and received six Emmy nominations for his work on the HBO series ‘Flight of the Conchords’. Besides, the Muppets kick ass!

Whitney – Man or Muppet – The Muppets – Well this one is a 50/50 chance, which is just sad for the Academy. However, after the songs that were nominated for the Golden Globes I kind of understand why there aren’t more nominees this year. I hope those loveable Muppets take it!

Best Original Score

Andrea – The Artist – The score essentially becomes part of the cast in a film with no dialogue; it is crucial in conveying the tone of the movie. ‘The Artist’ has a very  jaunty and atmospheric score that mirrors the visuals as well as perfectly captures the sound of films of the silent era.

Whitney – The Artist – Seriously, what else could possibly win this? The score was the dialogue. It set the tone and told the story. No contest here.

Best Makeup

Andrea – The Iron Lady – I’m putting my money on the Margaret Thatcher biopic. Not only does the makeup team need to make Meryl Streep look like the iconic British Prime Minister, but they must also create convincing aging makeup, which SyFy’s original series ‘FaceOff’ has taught me is very, very difficult.

Whitney – Albert Nobbs – I still maintain that it really didn’t take much to make Glenn Close look like a man , she’s a very, who should I say this, handsome woman. But, the Academy loves it when people get made over into the opposite sex.

Best Cinematography

Andrea – The Tree of Life – I love this category! Interesting and unique cinematography is my absolute favourite stylistic element of film. ‘The Tree of Life’ features some simply beautiful photography. Each frame is perfectly framed and balanced, resulting in a film that is both striking and fascinating to watch.

Whitney – War Horse – I’m not going to lie, this is a category in which I just picked one. I never get this one right, so I am going with my gut. A sweeping movie about war and horse running through the fields of Europe, I think I’ve got a good chance.

Best Film Editing

Andrea – The Artist– I’m picking ‘The Artist’ because this movie had really tight editing that helped set the pace and tone of the movie. It also had some really clever and cute edits that added to the film as a whole.

Whitney – Hugo – I am terrible at the technical awards and Andrea cleans up in them, which makes for an interesting competition. So, this will be another one of those going with my guts choices. And, Hugo was a stunning movie.

Best Visual Effects

Andrea – Rise of the Planet of the Apes – The visual effects were key in making this a believable and engaging movie. Without the incredibly realistic ape effects no one would have been able to watch the movie without being distracted by the cheesy cartoon  monkeys. Certainly, the scene in which Ceaser first speaks never would have had the impact it did if the visual effects were lacking.

Whitney – Rise of the Planet of the Apes – I forgot that the apes in this movie weren’t real about 5 minutes in. It’s a long way from the fur costumes of the originals. I think this is the movie that most deserves this award. The Transformers and Real Steel are just big, emotionless machines, I would be really mad if either of those won.

Best Sound Editing

Andrea – Hugo – I think the sound design is awesome in this movie, everything from massive clocks to the diversity of sounds throughout the train station to the cinematic elements. I think ‘Hugo’ is the clear winner.

Whitney – Transformers: Dark of the Moon – One thing the Transformers franchise is good at (aside from bastardizing one of my favourite childhood cartoons) is sound. All of the mechanical screeches and whirrs sound amazing.

Best Sound Mixing

Andrea – Hugo – I’m sticking with ‘Hugo’ for sound mixing. I was thinking of going with ‘War Horse’ because the sound design for war films and battlefield scenes is pretty crazy, but like I said, I think ‘Hugo’ is going to win both sound categories.

Whitney – Transformers: Dark of the Moon – Again, there is no competition in my mind about why this film should get this award. They make the giant Autobots seem real. Or sound real at least.

Best Documentary (Feature)

Andrea – Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory – This is the third film in a series that chronicles the unjust arrest and imprisonment of three men in West Memphis, Arkansas. These documentaries are applauded for raising awareness and support for these innocent men and this film concludes with the three men’s release from prison. That right there is Oscar Gold!

Whitney – Hell and Back Again – The Academy just can’t help themselves, they love giving films that celebrate their many military men awards. I wish they would branch out a little bit, but they just can’t seem to get over war stories.

Best Documentary (Short)

Andrea – The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom – It seems most documentary filmmakers search out the most depressing and bleak stories on which to focus. And though this film centres on Japan’s recent tsunami, the short showcases the hope, determination and courage of the residents.

Whitney – Saving Face  – I am going against my gut with this one. It’s the one short documentary that I think sounds the most interesting, and I refuse to give it to yet another movie about Afghanistan.

Best Short Film (Animated)

Andrea – The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore – This film demonstrates an assortment of amazing animation techniques as well as a terrific story. A wonderful short that is very much worthy of this award.

Whitney – The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore – I watched most of the shorts and I absolutely LOVED this one. It was amazing animation, a great story and I was invested in what happened about 30 seconds in. I really, really, really hope it wins.

Best Short Film (Live Action)

Andrea – The Shore – I usually have trouble with the shorts and documentary categories, but this short was uplifting, funny and touching and I think it has a good chance of winning the Oscar.

Whitney – Time Freak – I am a sci-fi lover, and any movie about time travel, short or not, is my choice. I am pretty sure there is no way in hell that this will win, but I gotta be true to myself, man. Plus, it looks really funny and really well done.

 

Be sure to download a printable ballot for this Sunday’s 84th Academy Awards and make some picks of your own! There is nothing better than gambling to increase the enjoyment of an awards show telecast!