The 84th Annual Academy Awards: Final Predictions

Well we are into February, and we’re just 21 days away from the 84th annual Academy Awards. A while back a did a blog predicting the nominees, and now I’m going to try and predict the winners. Let’s not waste any time, and dive straight in

Best Picture
Will Win: The Artist
Could Win: The Descendants
Should Win: Hugo
Biggest Snub: The Ides of March

What I thought was a much closer race at the time of my last blog has now become almost a formality for Michael Hazanavicious’s love letter to cinema, The Artist. It has been gathering momentum, and it’s competitors’ momentum has been waning. All in all, I think it’s going to be a comfortable win for another supremely overrated film. If not The Artist, then The Descendants is probably the next in line, but don’t hold your breath.

Best Director
Will Win: Martin Scorsese - Hugo
Could Win: Terrence Malick - The Tree of Life
Should Win: Martin Scorsese - Hugo
Biggest Snub: Bennet Miller - Moneyball

The race Best Director is a little more interesting. I predicted Scorsese to do well here in my last predictions, and after his Golden Globe win, I’ve seen nothing to change my mind. With that said, I didn’t think The Tree of Life, great film though it is, would trouble the Oscars this year, so if the Academy are in the mood to nominate it, perhaps they’re in the mood to give Terrence Malick a directing nod, where it fares a much better chance than the Best Picture category.

Best Actor
Will Win: George Clooney - The Descendants
Could Win: Brad Pitt - Moneyball
Should Win: Gary Oldman - Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Biggest Snub: Michael Fassbinder -Shame/Leonardo DiCaprio - J. Edgar

The Best Actor race looks pretty straightforward, with Clooney looking the odds on favourite to take home the statue. Brad Pitt could cause an upset, but it’s Clooney’s Oscar to lose.

Best Actress
Could Win: Viola Davis - The Help
Could Win: Meryl Streep - The Iron Lady
Should Win: Rooney Mara - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Biggest Snub: Tilda Swinton - We Need to Talk About Kevin

Probably the closest race in the major categories, the Best Actress award really could go either way, with Viola Davis and Meryl Streep set to battle it out for the statue. The Academy may wish to reward The help, it would no doubt be seen as a good PR move, given The Help’s racially themed subject matter, but the Academy love Streep, and they love Britain, and they love seeing great Actors/Actresses giving great performances of British politicians during a time of strife in the country, such as war, such as The Falklands war, for those of you who don’t know your history. If you pushed me, I’d probably say Streep will take the award, but it really could go either way.

Best Supporting Actor
Will Win: Kenneth Branagh - My Week with Marilyn
Could Win: Christopher Plummer - Beginners
Should Win: Christopher Plummer - Beginners
Biggest Snub: Philip Seymour Hoffman - The Ides of March

Yeah, this is definitely my “stick-your-neck-out” prediction of this year, everyone and their mother things Plummer is going to take home the statue, but personally, I’m not feeling it, I think the hype behind Plummer’s performance has set him up to fall victim to a scalp, and I think the most likely source is Kenneth Branagh as Sir Lawrence Olivier, it’s the kind of role and the kind of actor that The Academy positively drools over, and it may be going against conventional wisdom, but I think Branagh is going to nick it

Best Supporting Actress
Will Win: Octavia Spencer - The Help
Could win: Bérénice Bejo - The Artist
Should Win: Idunnolol
Biggest Snub: Shailene Woodley - The Descendants

Spencer probably takes the statue, but I can’t help but feel that The Academy smuggling Bérénice Bejo into a category she clearly doesn’t belong might just be a sly ploy to give The Artist another award. It should also be said that the other three nominees are all in with a shot, and it’s shaping up to be a tight race.

Best Original Screenplay
Will Win: Woody Allen - Midnight in Paris
Could Win: Michael Hazanavicius - The Artist
Should Win: Woody Allen - Midnight in Paris
Biggest Snub: There really weren’t any

All in all, it’s very difficult to see this going to anything except Midnight in Paris. The Artist is probably the most likely film to cause an upset, but I’d say Midnight in Paris is a pretty safe bet.

Best Adapted Screenplay
Will Win: Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin - Moneyball
Could Win: George Clooney, Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon - The Ides of March
Should Win: George Clooney, Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon - The Ides of March
Biggest Snub: Idunnolol

Difficult to predict, there’s no one powerhouse screenplay that seems poised to take the cake, I’m going to say Moneyball, but take it with a pinch of salt.

Best Animated Feature
Will Win: Rango
Could Win: Chico and Rita
Should Win: None of them
Biggest Snub: The Adventures of Tintin

After the baffling snub of The Adventures of Tintin, Rango is probably the most likely candidate to take the statue.

Best Foreign Film
Will Win: A Seperation
Could Win: Nothing Else
Should Win: A Seperation
Biggest Snub: I don’t see many foreign films lol

Easiest call anyone will make all night, A Seperation will win, hands down.

My knowledge gets a little hazy and my predictions less well informed after this point, so take everything after this with a pinch of salt

Best Documentaries/Short films
Haven’t a clue, I’d be flat out guessing here

Best Original Score
Will Win: Ludovic Bource - The Artist
Could Win: John Williams - The Adventures of Tintin
Should Win: Howard Shore - Hugo

Best Original Song
Will Win: “Man or Muppet” - The Muppets
Could Win: Well, “Real in Rio” - Rio, seeing as it’s the only other nominee
Should Win: Haven’t heard either of them

Best Sound Editing
Will Win: Lon Bender and Victor Ray Ennis - Drive
Could Win: Ren Klyce - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Should Win: Lon Bender and Victor Ray Ennis - Drive

Best Sound Mixing
Will Win: David Parker, Ren Klyce, Michael Semanik and Bo Persson - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Could Win: Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers, Jeffrey J. Haboush, Peter J. Devlin - Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Should Win: David Parker, Ren Klyce, Michael Semanik and Bo Persson - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Best Art Direction
Will Win: The Artist
Could Win: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Should Win: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2


Best Cinematography
Will Win: Robert Richardson - Hugo
Could Win: Jeff Cronenweth - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Should Win: Robert Richardson - Hugo

Best Makeup
Will Win: Nick Dudman, Amanda Knight and Lisa Tomblin - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Could Win: Mark Coulier and J. Roy Helland - The Iron Lady
Should Win: Mark Coulier and J. Roy Helland - The Iron Lady

Best Costume Design
Will Win: Mark Bridges - The Artist
Could Win: Anonymous - Lisy Christl
Should Win: Sandy Powell - Hugo

Best Film Editing
Will Win: Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Could Win: Thelma Schoonmaker - Hugo
Should Win: Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Best Visual Effects
Will Win: Tim Burke, David Vickery, Greg Butler and John Richardson - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Could Win: Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White and Daniel Barret - Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Should Win: Will Win: Tim Burke, David Vickery, Greg Butler and John Richardson - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2