Oscar Predictions: June Update

Shortly after I posted last year’s predictions, the teaser for Gravity was released. Here’s the thing: I know many people are amazed by this teaser, but it just doesn’t ‘wow’ me the way that the teasers for Hugo and Life Of Pi did. What’s interesting is that both of those films were adopted from novels by academy award winning directors stepping out of their comfort zone. Not only is Gravity an original story, but Alfonso Cuaron has only been nominated for writing and editing before, never for directing. And besides, Cuaron is known for telling very visual stories (Children Of Men, Harry Potter 3) so this isn’t really anything new for him. Somehow I just don’t think the film will be that strong a contender.

So what’s happened this month that might change my opinion on Oscar season? Well, I am more confident about the chances of Inside Llewyn Davis, as well as a Sundance hit called The Way Way Back, from the writers of The Descendants. Hmm, maybe a screenplay contender? Also, now that i’ve seen Epic, I’m starting to doubt that it will earn an Animated Feature nomination. It basically comes down to foreign pick Ernest and Celestine and Turbo. I decided to go with the former on this, more for the fact that Turbo looks like a cheap knockoff of Ratatouille. I mean, think about it. It’s about a small animal who dreams of participating in a human activity, he makes friends with a human, and eventually his dream comes true. The only difference seems to be that while Remy wanted to cook French Cuisine, Turbo IS French Cuisine.

UPDATE: Untitled David O. Russell Film is now American Hustle.

BEST PICTURE

The Butler
Captain Phillips
The Counselor
Frozen
Inside Llewyn Davis
The Monuments Men
Saving Mr. Banks
Twelve Years A Slave
The Wolf Of Wall Street

BEST DIRECTOR

George Clooney, The Monuments Men
Joel & Ethan Coen, Inside Llewyn Davis
Lee Daniels, The Butler
Paul Greengrass, Captain Phillips
Martin Scorsese, The Wolf Of Wall Street

BEST ACTOR

Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf Of Wall Street
Tom Hanks, Captain Phillips
Matthew McConaughey, The Dallas Buyers Club
Brad Pitt, The Counselor
Forest Whitaker, The Butler

BEST ACTRESS

Meryl Streep, August: Osage Country
Hailee Steinfeld, Romeo & Juliet
Emma Thompson, Saving Mr. Banks
Naomi Watts, Diana
Kate Winslet, Labor Day

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Willem Dafoe, A Most Wanted Man
Johnny Depp, The Lone Ranger
Tom Hanks, Saving Mr. Banks
Michael Fassbender, Twelve Years A Slave
Mark Ruffalo, Foxcatcher

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Amy Adams, American Hustle
Margo Martindale, August: Osage Country
Carey Mulligan, Inside Llewyn Davis
Julia Roberts, August: Osage Country
Oprah Winfrey, The Butler

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

The Butler
Frozen
Labor Day
The Monuments Men
Wolf Of Wall Street

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

The Counselor
Inside Llewyn Davis
Nebraska
Twelve Years A Slave
The Way Way Back

BEST FILM EDITING

Captain Phillips
The Counselor
The Monuments Men
Twelve Years A Slave
The Wolf Of Wall Street

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Gravity
The Great Gatspy
Inside Llewyn Davis
Twelve Years A Slave
The Wolf Of Wall Street

BEST ART DIRECTION

The Butler
Gravity
The Great Gadspy
Oz The Great And Powerful
The Wolf Of Wall Street

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

The Butler
Diana
Captain Phillips
The Great Gadspy
The Wolf Of Wall Street