If I Picked the Academy Awards…2013 Edition
Time to take a look at the previous Academy Award nominees and winners, and this time we’re looking at 2013. Lots of great films were nominated and lots of great films were released. We’ll see how many shockers and upsets I would have had in mind if I picked the Academy Awards.
Best Animated Feature Nominees:
Despicable Me 2
Ernest and Celestine
Frozen
The Croods
The Wind Rises
The winner: Frozen
My pick: Frozen
Once again I’m stuck seeing only one or two nominees, in this case I only saw Croods and Frozen, with the latter being the better film. Not only was the animation very well done, but the story was a good one as well. And of course a few of the songs from the soundtrack were over-played and instantly were not only the most popular songs of the season but also the most hated. Anyways, this is a good one.
Best Adapted Screenplay Nominees:
12 Years a Slave
Before Midnight
Captain Phillips
Philomena
The Wolf of Wall Street
The winner: 12 Years a Slave
My pick: The Wolf of Wall Street
I was a really big fan of Martin Scorsese’s Wolf of Wall Street, and in particular I enjoyed the fast-paced and high-octaned screenplay by Terrence Winter. Sure there was some improvisation that covered some of his tracks, but still a lot of the speeches are amazingly written and some very funny lines make for a great screenplay. Philomena and 12 Years also had a lot of great moments in their scripts but I’ll go with Wolfy on this one.
Best Original Screenplay Nominees:
American Hustle
Blue Jasmine
Dallas Buyers Club
Her
Nebraska
The winner: Her
My pick: Nebraska
Every nominee in this category is a worthy winner in another year, especially for me Her and Dallas Buyers Club, which both featured some unorthodox materials and made them not only entertaining, but at times emotional. Then you have Nebraska, which moves from one great memorable moment to the next with well-written confrontational scenes, joking scenes, and of course lots of old man and confusion jokes that hit the mark every time, and that’s enough for me to award it.
Best Actress in a Supporting Role Nominees:
Sally Hawkins, Blue Jasmine
Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle
Lupita Nyong’o, 12 Years a Slave
Julia Roberts, August: Osage County
June Squibb, Nebraska
The winner: Lupita Nyong’o, 12 Years a Slave
My pick: June Squibb, Nebraska
All hail June Squibb! Her role in Nebraska is not just hilarious, but also at the end touching. In particular she gets two scenes where she chews out her family members, both alive and dead, and puts them in their place. What a great character as well, as the long-suffering wife of a confused old man who is hell-bent on cashing in on a Publisher’s Clearing House type scheme promising him $1 million. Also great work, of course, from the other nominees, but Squibb kicks ass.
Best Actor in a Supporting Role Nominees:
Barkhad Abdi, Captain Phillips
Bradley Cooper, American Hustle
Michael Fassbender, 12 Years a Slave
Jonah Hill, The Wolf of Wall Street
Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club
The winner: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club
My pick: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club
A pretty great category here, but for me the win went to Jared Leto. His role as Rayon in Dallas Buyers Club is one that’s hard to forget, from the physical transformation to the character and mannerisms he portrays. Plus his pairing with Matthew McConaughey was among the best of the year. I guess that’s all I have to say about this one, other than it’s a great watch.
Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominees:
Amy Adams, American Hustle
Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
Sandra Bullock, Gravity
Judi Dench, Philomena
Meryl Streep, August: Osage County
The winner: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
My pick: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
There’s just no denying that Blanchett is easily among the best working actors, male or female, of today. Her role as Jasmine in Woody Allen’s film was great, from the opening airplane scene to the closing park bench scene, and she’s in control from that first frame to the final one. A lot of great nominees in this category though, from Amy Adams to Judi Dench, but I gotta go with Blanchett.
Best Actor in a Leading Role Nominees:
Christian Bale, American Hustle
Bruce Dern, Nebraska
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street
Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave
Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club
The winner: Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club
My pick: Bruce Dern, Nebraska
I’m sure you can tell by now just how much I loved this movie, and perhaps the biggest reason is its leading man, Bruce Dern. His performance as the man who crosses the mid-west in search of a million dollar fortune courtesy of a Publishers Clearing House type scam. From emotional moments to the great kidding his character does, his performance is a marvel and one that I’m not going to forget anytime soon.
Best Director Nominees:
Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave
Alexander Payne, Nebraska
David O. Russell, American Hustle
Martin Scorsese, The Wolf of Wall Street
The winner: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
My pick: Alexander Payne, Nebraska
Part of what makes the film Nebraska so great is how right it gets the small mid-western town post 2008 financial crisis. It’s all elderly broke geezers, nearly unemployed young men, and kids who have to start working at young teen years. Plus the choice to present the film in glorious black and white was a great move, not just to make it stand out, but because the truth that we see in the characters is almost in a late 60’s, early 70’s documentary feel, and the best of those were still in black and white. Payne is also a great director, period, and knows how to get the best performances of many of the cast’s careers out of them. A very worthy nominee in my eyes.
Best Picture Nominees:
12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Nebraska
Philomena
The Wolf of Wall Street
The winner: 12 Years a Slave
My pick: Nebraska
Living in the mid-west maybe skews my opinion on this one, but overall this is a film that should be remembered for the rest of the decade and the decades to come. From the acting performances to the direction to the script to the technical aspects, there isn’t a wrong step taken in the film, and certainly this is one that even the most mainstream audiences members should take a break for and go out of their comfort zone and watch. I know a lot of films fans probably have seen it, but its also one you can go back to and still laugh at, still get swept up in, and still one you can call one of the best films of the year.
So that does it for this week’s If I Picked the Academy Awards, and be sure to let me know your picks, your ideas, and your opinions. Until next time, enjoy the picks.
