My Big Bold 2012 Oscar Winner Predictions

Ok, enough with the Grammys, Globes and SAG Awards, the grand daddy of them all is here: the Academy Awards. This Sunday is the big day with the supreme Oscar host Billy Crystal returning to preside over the big day. With Crystal in command, we know the show will be hilarious, but will there be any surprises? Well, the top two acting races are just that, races between two deserving candidates. So, we could have upsets and some serious excitement. With that said, can anyone stop The Artist from sweeping? Well, take a look at my big bold Oscar winner predictions below and see.

My Big Bold 2012 Oscar Winner Predictions:

Best Picture:
The Artist, The Descendants, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, The Help, Hugo, Midnight in Paris, Moneyball, The Tree of Life, War Horse
Will & Should win: The Artist
spoiler: Hugo
~ my sentimental fave: The Help

Best Director:
Woody Allen (Midnight in Paris), Michael Hazanvicius (The Artist), Terrence Malick (The Tree of Life), Alexander Payne (The Descendants), Martin Scorsese (Hugo)
Will & Should win: Michael Hazanavicius
~spoiler: Martin Scorsese

Best Actor:
Demian Bichir (A Better Life), George Clooney (The Descendants), Jean Dujardin (The Artist), Gary Oldman (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy), Brad Pitt (Moneyball)
Will & Should win: Jean Dujardin
~spoiler: George Clooney
* This is a super tight race and it will be close between Clooney and Dujardin. How neat would it be if the wonderful and truly deserving Bichir pulled a surprise upset here? It’s not gonna happen, but it would be lovely to see.

Best Actress:
Glenn Close (Albert Nobbs), Viola Davis (The Help), Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady), Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn)
Will & Should win: Meryl Streep
~spoiler: Viola Davis
* ok, I’m going out on a big limb here. Conventional wisdom and smart money is on Davis (who was wonderful and would be a deserving winner). However, if you’ve seen The Iron Lady, you can’t deny Streep should win. She also hasn’t won in 30 years. Hello people!

Best Supporting Actor:
Kenneth Branagh (My Week with Marilyn), Jonah Hill (Moneyball), Nick Nolte (Warrior), Christopher Plummer (Beginners), Max Von Sydow (Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close)
Will & Should win: Christopher Plummer
~spoiler: Max Von Sydow

Best Supporting Actress:
Berenice Bejo (The Artist), Jessica Chastain (The Help), Melissa McCarthy (Bridesmaids), Janet McTeer (Albert Nobbs), Octavia Spencer (The Help)
Will & Should win: Octavia Spencer
~spoiler: Melissa McCarthy

Best Original Screenplay:
The Artist, Bridesmaids, Margin Call, Midnight in Paris, A Separation
Will win: Midnight in Paris
Should win: Bridesmaids
~spoiler: The Artist

Best Adapted Screenplay:
The Descendants, Hugo, The Ides of March, Moneyball, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Will Win: Moneyball
~spoiler: The Descendants
* This one will be close. I feel like they may throw a bone to The Descendants here, but I’m keeping my money on the better screenplay for Moneyball. Plus it has more overall nominations indicating wider support within the academy.

Best Cinematography:
The Artist, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Hugo, The Tree of Life, War Horse
Will win: The Tree of Life
Should win: War Horse (yes, I loved the movie, what of it?)
~spoiler: The Artist (they love some black and white)

Best Editing:
The Artist, The Descendants, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Hugo, Moneyball
Will win: The Artist
Should win: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
~Spoiler: Hugo

Best Animated Film:
A Cat in Paris, Chico and Rita, Kung Fu Panda 2, Puss in Boots, Rango
Will & Should win: Rango

Best Foreign Film:
Bullhead, Footnote, In Darkness, Monsieur Lahzar, A Separation
Will & Should win: A Separation
~spoiler: In Darkness

Best Original Score:
The Adventures of Tin Tin, The Artist, Hugo, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, War Horse
Will & Should win: The Artist

Best Original Song:
“Man or a Muppet” (The Muppets), “Real in Rio” (Rio)
Will & Should win: “Man or a Muppet” (this would be the first ever win for a Muppet movie!)
* PS- this category is a disaster. Due to their strict rules, a ton of great and deserving songs by Mary J. Blige (The Help), Elton John (Gnomeo & Juliet), Madonna (W.E.), Pink (Happy Feet 2) and more didn’t make the cut. Blargh!

Best Art Direction:
The Artist, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2, Hugo, Midnight in Paris, War Horse
Will win: Hugo
Should win: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2
~spoiler: The Artist

Best Costume Design:
Anonymous, The Artist, Hugo, Jane Eyre, W.E.
Will win: The Artist
Should win: W.E.
~spoiler: W.E.

Best Makeup:
Albert Nobbs, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2, The Iron Lady
Will & Should win: The Iron Lady
~spoiler: Harry Potter

Best Sound Editing:
Drive, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Hugo, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, War Horse
Will win: Hugo
Should win: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Best Sound Mixing:
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Hugo, Moneyball, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, War Horse
Will win: Hugo
Should win: War Horse
~spoiler: Transformers

Visual Effects:
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2, Hugo, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Real Steel, Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Will win: Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Should win: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 (hello the Harry Potter franchise has never won an Oscar!)
~spoiler: Harry Potter

Best Documentary:
Hell and Back Again, If a Tree Falls, Paradise Lost 3, Pina, Undefeated
Will win: Undefeated
Should win: Pina
~spoiler: Paradise Lost 3
* this one is a super tight race… My first instinct is for Pina to win (and it’s the most interesting, but also the most experimental). Then, I was thinking Undefeated plays into the emotions of the academy and has a bigger profile, so it may win. It’s a real tossup with the well-known Paradise Lost series in the mix as well.

* for the shorts, shoot me an email.

A Few Thoughts on today’s Oscar Nominations…

This morning Oscar nominee Jennifer Lawrence (Winter’s Bone) announced this year’s contenders and as always we saw the front runners like The Artist and Hugo grab headlines. However, we also saw some shocking snubs and some interesting inclusions. I already posted the full nominee list, so let’s take a look at a few thoughts I have on those who will be contending for this year’s Oscar.

Favorite Nomination: Melissa McCarthy (Bridesmaids)… I was so happy to see her included in this hilarious film. She gave a wonderfully hysterical performance that had way more layers than you might expect. Comedy needs more representation at the Oscars, so this is a nice start. (Also kudos to Kristin Wiig and her Oscar nominated script for the film).

Best Surprise: Rooney Mara and all the love for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. This fantastic film nabbed 5 nods in total. I just wish it was up for Best Pic and Director (David Fincher).
Biggest Snub: Michael Fassbender (Shame)… apparently his great performance may have been overlooked by his hot nekkid body? Or he cancelled himself out with other great turns in A Dangerous Method and Jane Eyre.

Other Big Snubs:
Leonardo DiCaprio (J. Edgar)… looks like academy members really didn’t like this film, which is a shame because Leo was great
Armie Hammer (J. Edgar)
Tilda Swinton (We Need to Talk About Kevin)… another film that may have been too dark and unlikable to get it’s great star a nod.
Albert Brooks (Drive)
Drive in all other categories (except sound)
Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt and Young Adult… apparently this acerbic dark comedy just didn’t resonate with Oscar voters. I’m sad, cuz it was a good flick.
Steven Spielberg (War Horse) for Director
Andy Serkis (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) and Alan Rickman (Harry Potter) both proved its hard to get nominated for big popcorn action films… oh and motion capture performances may never get nominated.
Elizabeth Olsen and Martha Marcy May Marlene… this great indie introduced us to a major acting star in Olsen and still got bupkiss
50/50 and Joseph Gordon Levitt… another great indie that should’ve gotten some love
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 in all big categories…. why oh why couldn’t this amazing franchise ever pull out a Best Pic nom? Especially when the final installment was clearly one of the best films of the year.

More Snubs: Shailene Woodley (The Descendants), Vanessa Redgrave (Coriolanus), Ryan Gosling (Drive, The Ides of March), The Adventures of Tin Tin (in Animated film), Carey Mulligan (Shame), the casts of The Ides of March and Midnight in Paris, Beginners for Screenplay and Director (Mike Mills)

~ And a Big Boo to the voters for dissing The Help for Screenplay, Score, Song, Costume Design and Director… That wonderful film should’ve had 9 noms, not just 4.

~While I’m complaining, I just have to say yuck to all the nods for The Tree of Life. Oy vey!

Other nice inclusions:
~Demian Bichir (A Better Life)… this wonderful performance in this small indie broke through with a SAG nod and he made the list today. I’m thrilled.
~Gary Oldman (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy)… can you believe this is his first nomination? I just wish it was for a better film.
~Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close and Max Von Sydow... I’m so happy one of my fave films of the year finally got some love. And I was kinda shocked to see it among the 9 nominees for Best Picture.
~Moneyball grabbed more noms that The Descendants, hehe….
~W.E. got into costume design. Yes, a film by Madonna got an Oscar nod. (I just wish her Golden Globe winning song “Masterpiece” had been eligible)

Speaking of Best Song….
What the heck is wrong with that category? By having a ridiculously difficult rule of the songs needing to rate 8.5 or higher by the music branch (out of 10), only 2 songs made the cut… And the one from The Muppets wasn’t even the best song from that film…
Look at all the snubbed songs that should’ve gotten mentioned:
“Life’s a Happy Song” (The Muppets)
“Pictures in My Head” (The Muppets)
“Bridge of Light” (Happy Feet 2) by P!nk
“Hello Hello” (Gnomeo & Juliet) by Elton John
“The Living Proof” (The Help) by Mary J. Blige
“Lay Down Your Head” (Albert Nobbs) by Glenn Close, etc

So, there are just a few thoughts for you… Now, let’s see who is gonna win… I’d say The Artist is still out in front despite Hugo landing the most noms…. I still have hope for The Help too.. and Meryl better win… With that said, what are your favorite noms? And who is the worst snub? Sound off below and watch for more on the Oscars in the weeks ahead.

Weekend Wins Big with the LGBT Critics!

The brilliant gay relationship drama Weekend won big with the national Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association today as it was named both the best film of the year and the best LGBT film of 2011. The group made up of over 50 gay and lesbian critics also named Meryl Streep the performance of the year for The Iron Lady and 50/50 as the most unsung film of the year. The documentary, We Were Here, about the origins and the ongoing battle with the AIDS crisis won two awards as well….Check out all the winners, including TV faces like Glee, below.

 

2012 GALECA Winners~

Film of the Year: Weekend
LGBT Film: Weekend
Performance of the Year: Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady)
We’re Wilde about you Rising Star of the Year: Michael Fassbender (Shame, X Men: First Class, Jane Eyre, A Dangerous Method)
Unsung Film of the Year: 50/50
Best Documentary: We Were Here
Best LGBT Documentary: We Were Here
Campiest Film: The Muppets

TV~
Drama of the Year: American Horror Story
Comedy of the Year: Glee
TV Performance of the Year: Jessica Lange, American Horror Story
TV Musical Program of the Year: TIE~ Glee and Lady Gaga Presents The Monsters Ball Tour
Unsung TV Show: Suburgatory
Wilde Wit of the Year: Kathy Griffin
Timeless Star: Betty White
Campiest TV Show: Revenge

Twilight holds off The Muppets during a lazy Weekend at the Box Office

In the second lowest grossing weekend of the year at the box office (following Labor Day), Twilight Breaking Dawn Part. 1 held on to the top spot for the third week in a row. The film which is likely to be a Razzie Award front-runner for worst picture of the year took in another $16.9 million for a big total of $247.3 million. Holding on to second was The Muppets which nabbed another $ 11.2 million for $56 million to date. With no new big releases, the specialty market made news as films in limited release like The Artist, The Descendants and My Week with Marilyn took in good numbers. Opening with very strong per theatre grosses were Oscar hopefuls Shame, starring Michael Fassbender, and David Cronenberg’s A Dangerous Method also with Fassbender plus Keira Knightly and Viggo Mortenson. For more on all the numbers, head to Box Office Mojo here and check out the new top ten below.

TW LW Title (click to view) Studio Weekend Gross % Change Theater Count / Change Average Total Gross Budget* Week #
1 1 The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 Sum. $16,900,000 -59.5% 4,046 -20 $4,177 $247,300,000 $110 3
2 2 The Muppets BV $11,200,000 -61.7% 3,440 – $3,256 $56,137,000 $45 2
3 5 Hugo Par. $7,625,000 -32.9% 1,840 +563 $4,144 $25,188,000 – 2
4 4 Arthur Christmas Sony $7,350,000 -39.1% 3,376 – $2,177 $25,292,000 – 2
5 3 Happy Feet Two WB $6,000,000 -55.2% 3,536 -75 $1,697 $51,785,000 – 3
6 6 Jack and Jill Sony $5,500,000 -45.0% 3,049 +20 $1,804 $64,308,000 $79 4
7 9 The Descendants FoxS $5,200,000 -29.2% 574 +184 $9,059 $18,087,000 – 3
8 7 Immortals Rela. $4,394,000 -50.5% 2,627 -50 $1,673 $75,588,000 $75 4
9 10 Tower Heist Uni. $4,100,000 -42.9% 2,404 -70 $1,705 $70,800,000 $75 5
10 8 Puss in Boots P/DW $3,050,000 -59.4% 2,750 -255 $1,109 $139,522,000 $130 6

Vampires, Penguins and Muppets Oh My~ it’s the Thanksgiving Box Office

Hello readers. I hope you had a great holiday weekend and stuffed your face repeatedly like I did. Perhaps ya’ll caught a movie or two. If you did, you likely saw one of two movies as the vampires and werewolves of Twilight and The Muppets dominated the box office. Despite another downturn weekend at the turnstiles, both films did quite well with Breaking Dawn Pt. 1 taking in $62 million over five days for a big total of $221 million to date. Disney’s reboot of The Muppets (which is awesome and hilarious by the way, Grade: A) opened to a strong $42 million far out-distancing the other newcomers. Grabbing middling grosses were two new family films with Arthur Christmas landing $17 million and the visually astounding Hugo taking in just $15 million. Both were beat by the second weekend of the disappointing Happy Feet Two which nabbed $18 million for a total of $ $43 million (that film will not come close to its predecessors total and will struggle to reach the century mark). The good news for all three of those films, and The Muppets, is that the holiday season sees strong legs for these family titles. So they should hold up well in the long run… Opening well in limited release was the charming My Week With Marilyn, featuring an Oscar worthy turn by Michelle Williams, which took in $2 million on just 244 screens. Also doing very well in limited release were The Descendants, The Artist and A Dangerous Method. For more on all these numbers, head to Box Office Mojo here and check out the new top ten below.

TW LW Title (click to view) Studio Weekend Gross Change Theater Count / Change Average Total Gross Budget* Week #
1 1 The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 Sum. $62,321,838 -54.9% 4,066 +5 $15,328 $221,300,000 $110 2
2 – The Muppets BV $42,000,000 – 3,440 – $12,209 $42,000,000 $45 1
3 2 Happy Feet Two WB $18,369,613 -13.5% 3,606 – $5,094 $43,773,000 – 2
4 – Arthur Christmas Sony $17,000,000 – 3,376 – $5,036 $17,000,000 – 1
5 – Hugo Par. $15,380,000 – 1,277 – $12,044 $15,380,000 – 1
6 4 Jack and Jill Sony $14,109,832 +20.2% 3,029 -409 $4,658 $57,417,000 $79 3
7 3 Immortals Rela. $12,529,900 +1.4% 2,677 -443 $4,681 $68,632,000 $75 3
8 5 Puss in Boots P/DW $10,377,647 -3.9% 3,005 -410 $3,453 $135,361,000 $130 5
9 6 Tower Heist Uni. $10,193,295 +43.5% 2,474 -468 $4,120 $65,380,000 $75 4
10 10 The Descendants FoxS $9,235,106 +676.0% 433 +404 $21,328 $10,741,000 – 2