The 84th Annual Academy Awards ceremony promises to go to down to the wire when the envelopes are opened and the winners announced on Sunday, Feb. 26.
For the most part, the Academy did a good job of selecting its nominees for the top category; however, the last-minute addition of Stephen Daldry’s “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” weakens this years crop slightly, as does the omission of powerful thrillers such as “Drive” and “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” which failed to make the cut.
The closest thing to a favorite in the race for Best Picture is Martin Scorcese’s “Hugo,” which earned the most nominations with 11, including nods for Scorcese in the Best Director category and for John Logan in the Best Adapted Screenplay category.
“The Artist” followed with 10 nominations, including nods for Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Director.
The most notable snub was Ryan Gosling in the Best Actor category for the second consecutive year. In 2011, the Academy failed to nominate the actor for his praiseworthy performance in “Blue Valentine.” Last week when the nominations were released, Gosling was missing once again, failing to earn a nomination for his work in both “Drive” and “The Ides of March.”
While Gosling was omitted from the Best Actor category, he wasn’t the only one left out in the cold. Leonardo DiCaprio (“J. Edgar”) and Michael Fassbender (“Shame”) were both denied nominations despite being nominated at the Golden Globes. Their omission paved the way for Demain Bichir (“A Better Life”) and Gary Oldman (“Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”) to earn surprise nominations.
Although a diverse group, the Best Acting category failed to maximize on the competition, limiting the race between Brad Pitt (“Moneyball”), Jean Dujardin (“The Artist”) and George Clooney (“The Descendants”) for a potential winner.
“The Descendants,” coming off a Best Picture victory at the Golden Globes, wasn’t among the top three films in terms of total nominations, earning a mere five nominations. Among the most notable snubs was the film’s young actress, Shailene Woodley, who should have been a shoo-in for a Best Supporting Actress nomination.
While there were plenty of snubs from the list of nominations, the Oscars were in successful in nominating nine newcomers to the ballot. That list includes, Bichir, Dujardin, Oldman, Rooney Mara (“The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo”), Berenice Bejo (“The Artist”), Jessica Chastain (“The Help”), Melissa McCarthy (“Bridesmaids”), Octavia Spencer (“The Help”) and Jonah Hill (“Moneyball”).
Spencer is a heavy favorite in the Best Supporting Actress category, which has been friendly to newcomers in the past (see: Tilda Swinson for “Michael Clayton”). However, Hill faces tough competition in the Best Supporting Actor category where he faces a trio of veteran actors in Max von Sydow (“Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close”), Nick Nolte (“Warrior”) and Christopher Plummer (“Beginners”).
With wins at the Golden Globes and the Screen Actors Guild awards, Plummer is the favorite in that race, and he deserves to be.
As for snubs in that category, Albert Brooks (“Drive”) and Armie Hammer (“J. Edgar”) have reason to complain; however, the list is perhaps the most complete of all the acting categories.As for Best Director, Scorcese is the favorite following the Globes and remains in the lead with the Academy shafting David Fincher (“Dragon Tattoo”) and Steven Spielberg (“War Horse”), despite the fact that they submitted some of the best work in their respective careers.
Woody Allen’s “Midnight in Paris” looms as a dark horse threat in the Picture, Director and Screenplay categories.
