Cinema Science

So a little late but here are my Oscar predictions.

Best Visual Effects

Transformers
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
The Golden Compass

My Pick: Transformers
My Preference: Transformers
Should've Been Nominated: Zodiac

Big robots smashing around down town Los Angeles looks cool.

Best Sound Mixing

Transformers
The Bourne Ultimatum
No Country for Old Men
3:10 to Yuma
Ratatouille

My Pick: Transformers
My Preference: No Country for Old Men
Should've Been Nominated: I'm not even sure what this category means.

The sound in No Country is one of the small things that makes it so great. Virtually no music but just the atmosphere makes it one of the tensest films I have ever seen.

Best Sound Editing

The Bourne Ultimatum
No Country for Old Men
Ratatouille
There Will Be Blood
Transformers

My Pick: Transformers
My Preference: No Country for Old Men
Should've Been Nominated: See above answer.

See above answer.

Best Live-Action Short Film

"At Night"
"Il Supplente" ("The Substitute")
"Les Mozart des Pickpockets" ("The Mozart of Pickpockets")
"Tanghi Argentini"
"The Tonto Woman"

My Pick: "Il Supplente"
My Preference: "Il Supplente"
Should've Been Nominated: Austin & Rivers

I haven't seen any of these, just guessing for the hell of it.

Best Animated Short

"I Met the Walrus"
"Madame Tutli-Putli"
"Meme les Pigeons Vont au Paradis" ("Even Pigeons Go to Heaven")
"My Love" ("Moya Lyubov")
"Peter and the Wolf"

My Pick: "I Met the Walrus"
My Preference: "I Met the Walrus"
Should've Been Nominated: "Lifted"

I saw the trailer for "I Met the Walrus" and that is the most footage I've seen from any of these. I picked "Lifted" because it played in the theater before Ratatouille.

Best Documentary (Short Subject)

"Freeheld"
"La Corona"
"Salim Baba"
"Sari's Mother"

My Pick: "Sari's Mother"
My Preference: No opinion.
Should've Been Nominated: No opinion.

No idea.

Best Makeup

La Vie en Rose
Norbit
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

My Pick: La Vie en Rose
My Preference: Norbit
Should've Been Nominated: Grindhouse

I want to see Norbit win an Oscar to go with its Razzies.

Best Art Direction

American Gangster
Atonement
The Golden Compass
Sweeney Todd
There Will Be Blood

My Pick: There Will Be Blood
My Preference: There Will Be Blood
Should've Been Nominated: The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

You never once think while watching There Will Be Blood that you aren't in the early 1900's. Also, give it to Jack Fisk for the work he did in Days of Heaven.

Best Costume Design

Albert Wolsky - Across the Universe
Jacqueline Durran - Atonement
Alexandra Byrne - Elizabeth: The Golden Age
Marit Allen - La Vie en Rose
Colleen Atwood - Sweeney Todd

My Pick: Jacqueline Durran - Atonement
My Preference: Colleen Atwood - Sweeney Todd
Should've Been Nominated: Who ever designed the clothes in There Will Be Blood

I picked Todd because it is the most costumey (pretty sure that isn't a real word) of the nominees.

Best Score

Dario Marinelli - Atonement
Alberto Iglesias - The Kite Runner
James Newton Howard - Michael Clayton
Michael Giacchino - Ratatouille
Marco Beltrami - 3:10 to Yuma

My Pick: Dario Marinelli - Atonement
My Preference: Dario Marinelli - Atonement
Should've Been Nominated - Nick Cave and Warren Ellis - The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

Since the score from There Will Be Blood was disqualified I'll pick Atonement, just for the use of a typewriter as a musical instrument.

Best Original Song

"Falling Slowly" - Once
"Happy Working Song" - Enchanted
"Raise It Up" - August Rush
"So Close" - Enchanted
"That's How You Know" - Enchanted

My Pick: "Falling Slowly" - Once
My Preference: "Falling Slowly" - Once
Should've Been Nominated: "Guaranteed" - Into the Wild

Eddie Veddar really should have been nominated. Three songs from Enchanted? Really?

Best Editing

Christopher Rouse - The Bourne Ultimatum
Juliette Welfling - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Jay Cassidy - Into the Wild
Roderick Jaynes - No Country for Old Men
Dylan Tichenor - There Will Be Blood

My Pick: Christopher Rouse - The Bourne Ultimatum
My Preference: Roderick Jaynes - No Country for Old Men
Should've Been Nominated: No complaints

The Bourne Ultimatum has the showier editing but No Country for Old Men is absolutely perfectly paced.

Best Cinematography

Roger Deakins - The Assassination of Jesse of James by the Coward Robert Ford
Seamus McGarvey - Atonement
Janusz Kaminski - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Roger Deakins - No Country for Old Men
Robert Elswit - There Will Be Blood

My Pick: Robert Elswit - There Will Be Blood
My Preference: Roger Deakins - The Assassination of Jesse of James by the Coward Robert Ford
Should've Been Nominated: Eric Gautier - Into the Wild

To be honest, I will be happy no matter who wins this category. They are all deserving nominees.

Best Documentary Feature

No End in Sight
Operation Homecoming: Writing the War Experience
Sicko
Taxi to the Darkside
War/Dance

My Pick: No End in Sight
My Preference: No End in Sight
Should've Been Nominated: King of Kong

It's sad but I haven't seen any of these.

Best Animated Feature

Ratatouille
Persepolis
Surf's Up

My Pick: Ratatouille
My Prerence: Ratatouille
Should've Been Nominated: The Simpsons Movie

No contest.

Best Foreign Language Film

Beaufort (Israel)
Mongol (Kazakhstan)
12 (Russia)
The Counterfeitters (Austria)
Katyn (Poland)

My Pick: The Counterfeitters
My Preference: Mongol
Should've Been Nominated: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Diving Bell is the only foreign language film I can remember seeing.

Best Writing: Adapted Screenplay

Joel and Ethan Coen - No Country for Old Men
Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood
Ronald Harwood - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Christopher Hampton - Atonement
Sarah Polley - Away from Her

My Pick: Joel and Ethan Coen - No Country for Old Men
My Preference: Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood
Should've Been Nominated: Sean Penn - Into the Wild

The Coen's probably deserve this, it's a wonderful script and the only reason I picked PTA as my preference is that they have already won and Oscar for writing. Part of me thinks Ronald Harwood could sneak up and win this.

Best Original Screenplay

Diablo Cody - Juno
Tony Gilroy - Michael Clayton
Tamra Jenkins - The Savages
Brad Bird - Ratatouille
Nancy Oliver - Lars and the Real Girl

My Pick: Diablo Cody - Juno
My Preference: Diablo Cody - Juno
Should've Been Nominated: Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg - Superbad

Cody has won everything else, what about a Ratatouille upset? Big fans of all of these (except The Savages, which I have yet to see).

Best Supporting Actress

Amy Ryan - Gone Baby Gone
Cate Blanchett - I'm Not There
Tilda Swinton - Michael Clayton
Saoirse Ronan - Atonement
Ruby Dee - American Gangster

My Pick: Tilda Swinton - Michael Clayton
My Preference: Amy Ryan - Gone Baby Gone
Should've Been Nominated: Emily Mortimer - Lars and the Real Girl

The most wide open of the major categories . I am picking this category for an upset because picking all the favorites is no fun. Also, this is the one category the Academy could show its love of Michael Clayton.

Best Supporting Actor

Javier Bardem - No Country for Old Men
Casey Affleck - The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Tom Wilkinson - Michael Clayton
Hal Holbrook - Into the Wild
Phillip Seymour Hoffman - Charlie Wilson's War

My Pick: Javier Bardem - No Country for Old Men
My Preference: Casey Affleck - The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Should've Been Nominated: No complaints

Any one of these deserve to win. I am also a huge fan of Holbrook's work in Into the Wild but Affleck made me look at him in a whole new light after seeing his film.

Best Actress

Marion Cotillard - La Vie en Rose
Julie Christie - Away from Her
Ellen Page - Juno
Laura Linney - The Savages
Cate Blanchett - Elizabeth: The Golden Age

My Pick: Julie Christie - Away from Her
My Preference: Ellen Page - Juno
Should've Been Nominated: Keira Knightly - Atonement

Christie has pretty much won everything so I don't see anything changing.

Best Actor

Daniel Day-Lewis - There Will Be Blood
George Clooney - Michael Clayton
Viggo Mortensen - Eastern Promises
Johnny Depp - Sweeney Todd
Tommy Lee Jones - In the Valley of Elah

My Pick: Daniel Day-Lewis - There Will Be Blood
My Preference: Daniel Day-Lewis - There Will Be Blood
Should've Been Nominated: Emile Hirsch - Into the Wild

He's finished.

Best Director

Joel and Ethan Coen - No Country for Old Men
Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood
Julian Schnabel - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Tony Gilroy - Michael Clayton
Jason Reitman - Juno

My Pick: Joel and Ethan Coen - No Country for Old Men
My Preference: Joel and Ethan Coen - No Country for Old Men
Should've Been Nominated: Andrew Dominik - The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford


Could Julian Schnabel upset here? I also wanted to pick PTA but I don't want it to seem like I'm not a fan of No Country. The Coen's are also due.

Best Picture

No Country for Old Men
There Will Be Blood
Juno
Michael Clayton
Atonement

My Pick: No Country for Old Men
My Preference: There Will Be Blood
Should've Been Nominated: Into the Wild

If anything but No Country wins it will be one of the biggest upsets in Oscar history. If it loses its because of the ending, sort of how Brokeback Mountain lost because of homophobia. If there is an upset I would pick it being Michael Clayton.