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Oscars 2015 are just a day away, so it is fitting that I place my bets on the winners of the upcoming 87th Academy Awards. With some great films and great performances, I will do my best to pick out the names that I believe have the biggest chance of bringing home the gold figures.
This year will probably be remembered for a lot of films in the Best Picture category which seem as if they are not the regular AAA Hollywood type movies. While this is refreshing and interesting, the Academy is still that well-known grand old place where constant work and dedication to the standard motion picture business are rewarded, so I'm making my assessment not only on the films themselves, but also previous work that the filmmakers, writers and actors invested in this incredible branch of the entertainment industry.
This year will probably be remembered for a lot of films in the Best Picture category which seem as if they are not the regular AAA Hollywood type movies. While this is refreshing and interesting, the Academy is still that well-known grand old place where constant work and dedication to the standard motion picture business are rewarded, so I'm making my assessment not only on the films themselves, but also previous work that the filmmakers, writers and actors invested in this incredible branch of the entertainment industry.
Like always, there will be a lot of trade-offs because many films are nominated in several categories, which makes prediction really tricky. For those categories where I’m not completely sure, I will split my chances by choosing two winners with a 30-70 percent chance of getting an Oscar (and lower my chances of looking dumb). Here are my picks of the Oscars 2015 nominations.
Actress in a Leading Role
Reese Witherspoon, Wild
Marion Cotillard, Two Days One Night
Julianne Moore, Still Alice – I’m, like everyone else, betting on Julianne Moore, she had this coming for 20+ years
Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl
Felicity Jones, The Theory of Everything
Actor in a Leading Role
Steve Carell, Foxcatcher
Bradley Cooper, American Sniper – because everyone loves a war hero (30%) and Cooper is an acting machine (which I’m not too fond of)
Michael Keaton, Birdman – because Hollywood loves a good comeback (70%)
Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything
Benedict Cumberbatch, The Imitation Game
Actress in a Supporting Role
Patricia Arquette, Boyhood – Least sure about this category, but Arquette seems to have the inside track
Emma Stone, Birdman
Keira Knightley, The Imitation Game
Meryl Streep, Into the Woods
Laura Dern, Wild
Actor in a Supporting Role
J.K. Simmons, Whiplash – pretty sure Simmons has this in the bag (he deserves it ever since Oz TV show)
Edward Norton, Birdman
Ethan Hawke, Boyhood
Mark Ruffalo, Foxcatcher
Robert Duvall, The Judge
Animated Feature Film (yes, we all cried when we heard Lego Movie is not here)
Big Hero 6
How to Train Your Dragon 2 – the heaviest hitter in the bunch (70%)
The Boxtrolls – has that groove that can make it the underdog winner (30%)
The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
Song of the Sea
Best Original Screenplay
Birdman
Boyhood
Foxcatcher – inspiring story no one ever heard of, I thinks it will take the prize (70%)
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Nightcrawler – deserves to win, but it shines that type of morbid light which isn’t very popular in any showbiz circles (30%)
Directing
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Birdman
Richard Linklater, Boyhood
Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel – this is a hunch, but I think Anderson will get because the film needs to win something
Morten Tyldum, The Imitation Game
Bennett Miller, Foxcatcher
Best Picture
Birdman
Boyhood – unique, took forever to make, everyone loves it, and I’m sure about this
Selma
The Theory of Everything
The Imitation Game
The Grand Budapest Hotel
American Sniper
Whiplash
If you have your own take on the Oscars 2015 nominations, feel free to tell me where I’m wrong or right.
Actress in a Leading Role
Reese Witherspoon, Wild
Marion Cotillard, Two Days One Night
Julianne Moore, Still Alice – I’m, like everyone else, betting on Julianne Moore, she had this coming for 20+ years
Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl
Felicity Jones, The Theory of Everything
Actor in a Leading Role
Steve Carell, Foxcatcher
Bradley Cooper, American Sniper – because everyone loves a war hero (30%) and Cooper is an acting machine (which I’m not too fond of)
Michael Keaton, Birdman – because Hollywood loves a good comeback (70%)
Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything
Benedict Cumberbatch, The Imitation Game
Actress in a Supporting Role
Patricia Arquette, Boyhood – Least sure about this category, but Arquette seems to have the inside track
Emma Stone, Birdman
Keira Knightley, The Imitation Game
Meryl Streep, Into the Woods
Laura Dern, Wild
Actor in a Supporting Role
J.K. Simmons, Whiplash – pretty sure Simmons has this in the bag (he deserves it ever since Oz TV show)
Edward Norton, Birdman
Ethan Hawke, Boyhood
Mark Ruffalo, Foxcatcher
Robert Duvall, The Judge
Animated Feature Film (yes, we all cried when we heard Lego Movie is not here)
Big Hero 6
How to Train Your Dragon 2 – the heaviest hitter in the bunch (70%)
The Boxtrolls – has that groove that can make it the underdog winner (30%)
The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
Song of the Sea
Best Original Screenplay
Birdman
Boyhood
Foxcatcher – inspiring story no one ever heard of, I thinks it will take the prize (70%)
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Nightcrawler – deserves to win, but it shines that type of morbid light which isn’t very popular in any showbiz circles (30%)
Directing
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Birdman
Richard Linklater, Boyhood
Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel – this is a hunch, but I think Anderson will get because the film needs to win something
Morten Tyldum, The Imitation Game
Bennett Miller, Foxcatcher
Best Picture
Birdman
Boyhood – unique, took forever to make, everyone loves it, and I’m sure about this
Selma
The Theory of Everything
The Imitation Game
The Grand Budapest Hotel
American Sniper
Whiplash
If you have your own take on the Oscars 2015 nominations, feel free to tell me where I’m wrong or right.
