Oscars 2013: Nominee list predictions

The Oscars are kinda like prom: we all pretend like we don't care about it and laugh at the ones who care too much. The obsession some people have with the Oscars in serious newspapers, such as Guardian and Huffington Post are sometimes just hilarious, as how I once read an article of how the race for Best Actor is already won several months ago and blah blah blah, like the actual quality of the movies is at the very bottom of the Oscar's priority. I won't try to philosophise much, because you can bash your head with these things for hours, but simply admit that I am quite interested in this whole Oscar buzz bullshit. And even if I woudn't be interested, it is only my duty as a (wannabe) blogger / (wannabe) movie reviewer, that I give you my predictions for the Oscar nominations. So here they are ladies and gentlemen, and be warned before continuing: this list is exactly what I think will get nominated, quite far from, what I think should be nominated, I will put my personal opinions in, when the official nominee list comes out. Also, these are all just "sort of" predictions, ya know...my way. I won't predict all of the categories, in some cases, not all of the nominees... you get it. And if you don't, you'll see.

Best Original Song

"Skyfall" - Skyfall

"Something Something" - Les Miserables

"Safe & Sound" - The Hunger Games

Just to clarify, Something Something is not a song, it's just saying any of the songs from the film could get nominated, because I don't know them. Skyfall is a James Bond song and a damn good one, Les Miserables is a Best Picture-contending musical and The Hunger Games have an awesome and critically-acclaimed soundtrack full of well-known artists with actually good songs, so there isn't a lot of speculation here. I've heard quite a few months ago, that there might more nominees in this category, so Something I can't remember from Act Of Valor and Something by Bon Jovi could fill up the other slots, as they are already nominated for the Golden Globes.

Best Original Score 

John Williams - Lincoln

Hans Zimmer - The Dark Knight Rises

Tom Tykwer & Johnny Klimek & Reinhold Heil - Cloud Atlas

Alexandre Desplat - Argo

Mychaell Dana - Life Of Pi

I know some of you might not find fair me picking out these after the Golden Globes nominations have been announced, but still, it hasn't influenced my picks that much - the Cloud Atlas score is amazing, so is TDKR's, so I don't have a clue why it didn't get the Golden Globe nod and I don't know the rest, but they are nominated for the Globe and they are for the other Best Picture contenders, so they could complete a possible consolation package for the loser. 

Best Technical Shit

The Avengers

Life Of Pi

The Dark Knight Rises

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Cloud Atlas

By "Best Technical Shit" I mean Visual Effects, Art Direction, Cinematography, Sound Mixing and Sound Editing (sorry, just have to swear a bit, to be cool). There also isn't a lot of speculation here, as these movies simply have the best visuals and audios and technical shit. Les Miserables could also tuck itself in Art Direction and Skyfall in Cinematography. 

Best Make-up

Les Miserables

Holy Motors

Looper

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey 

Les Miserables is supposed to be a costume and production design and make-up epic and whatnot, and it could also get this and the Original Song as a possible consolation package if it doesn't win Best Picture. Holy Motors is supposed to be this artsy critic-loved movie full of transformations, so it will definitely be nominated. I was also sure Cloud Atlas that will be nominated, but it's not even in the final round, so fuck the Academy (No seriously, fuck it, cause that movie should win). There's also The Hobbit with its dwarwes and Looper, which actually made it look like somebody kidnapped Bruce Willis and brought him back from the past. 

Best Animated Feature 

Wreck-It Ralph

Paranorman

Frankenweenie

I haven't actually seen any of these movies, but I've heard a lot of good stuff about them. While Frankenweenie is this year's Rango (which won last year, by the way), the other two play on the nostalgic references and can't let the nomination slip. The Golden Globes got 5 nominations, but last year the Oscars got 3 and I think they deserve so many this year as well. 

Best Supporting Actor

Philip Seymour Hoffman - The Master

Tommy Lee Jones - Lincoln

Robert De Niro - Silver Linings Playbook

Bryan Cranston / Alan Arkin - Argo

Leonardo DiCaprio - Django Unchained 

We come into the acting territory, which I admit is not my strongest. It's not that I don't recognize good acting, it's just that I haven't seen any of these Oscar contenders (except Argo), so I just based these on the buzz and the Globes. Hoffman and Jones are guaranteed because of their movies, I think De Niro's and DiCaprio's stylish comeback will be welcome amongst the Academy and then there's Argo - I am  pretty sure Bryan Cranston will get nominated, because he simply is the best in the film, but Alan Arkin did get the Globe nod, so we'll see.

Best Supporting Actress

Sally Field - Lincoln 

Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables

Amy Adams - The Master

To be honest, I don't know what else to write here. Field and Adams are Globe-nominated and parts of Best Picture contenders and the critics seem to jizz when they see Hathaway cry and sing, so there's that.

Best Actor

Daniel Day-Lewis - Lincoln

Bradley Cooper - Silver Linings Playbook

Joaquin Phoenix - The Master

Denzel Washington - Flight

Washington already won an Oscar, but I don't think the Academy gives a shit. The rest is expected, as you can see I've left one slot left, because I simply don't know what to write left and I really hope Bradley Cooper gets nominated, because I simply like the guy. 

Best Actress

Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty
Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook
Helen Mirren - Hitchcock
Meryl Streep - Hope Springs
Quvenzhané Wallis - Beasts Of The Southern Wild

Chastain, Lawrence and Mirren are 100 %, while I was kinda guessing Meryl Streep, since she gets nominated every time she appears on screen and she was supposed to be amazing in Hope Springs. The one whose name nobody can pronounce is 11 years old in this super-indie movie, so I guess she has a good chance of getting nominated.

Best Screenplay 

Argo

Lincoln

Django Unchained

Moonrise Kingdom

Zero Dark Thirty

I decided to merge Best Original and Best Adapted Screenplay, because a) I don't know that much and b) I don't really know, which are adapted and which not. There isn't a lot of speculation here except for Moonrise Kingdom, which I saw and bet my head on the Oscar nod right afterwards, but it hasn't been nominated for the Globes.

Best Director

Steven Spielberg - Lincoln

Ben Affleck - Argo

Kathryn Bigelow - Zero Dark Thirty

Tom Hooper - Les Miserables

Ang Lee - Life Of Pi

Quentin Tarantino for Django is a possible tuck-in, while otherwise it's pretty much chosen. Lincoln's a biography starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Argo is about Hollywood, Kathryn Bigelow is a revolutionary woman and Life Of Pi is a cheese-fest with a tiger named Mr. Parker, so they have definitive nominations coming up. The one that could get replaced by Tarantino (or perhaps Wes Anderson for Moonrise Kingdom?) is Hooper. Not that the Academy won't be impressed with his directing, but he won like two years ago, so...

Best Picture

Lincoln

The Master

Silver Linings Playbook

Life Of Pi

Zero Dark Thirty

Cloud Atlas

Argo

The Dark Knight Rises

Django Unchained

Les Miserables

This one is of course the trickiest, especially with The Academy making up these new rules, in which they can nominate 5 - 10 films for Best Picture. What I was very shocked at when viewing most of these prediction lists is the lack of TDKR. Okay guys, I know that the Academy hates every movie, that has more then one explosion in it and does not reflect the economic crisis at the same time, but still - one of the main reasons this whole thing with more then 5 nominees was brought on is because a lot of people were pissed when The Dark Knight wasn't nominated in 2008, so it's only fair to give a nod to its sequel, even tough the old farts there probably hated it. The rest is pretty much for sure, I am a bit sceptical about TDKR and Cloud Atlas tough, since they actually have action in them and stuff, but Cloud Atlas is a big step forward in film-making in general, so it should only be fair to be nominated. Beasts of the Southern Wild is a possible tuck-in, but I'm most sure about this setlist.

So what do you think of my predictions for the nominations for the 2013 Oscars? Did I miss anything/anyone out? Do you think this whole Oscar buzz bullshit is too huge? Comment below, let me know!