Critic picks flicks, stars to lead road to gold in Hollywood
No one in Hollywood will be fast asleep on Tuesday morning. At 5:30 a.m., the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences in Beverly Hills will announce the nominees for the biggest prize in Tinsel Town: the Academy Award.
Oscars are very serious stuff in the studio world, and millions of dollars have already been spent on glossy trade-paper ads urging academy voters to support pictures and performers in numerous areas. In the process, actors nominate actors, cinematographers nominate cinematographers, etc. All of the 5,000-plus academy members nominate titles in the best-picture category.
Here’s a look at those with the best chances of landing nominations in the major categories for the 77th Academy Awards on Feb. 27:
Best Picture
Sure shots: Martin Scorsese’s “The Aviator,” a biography of Howard Hughes starring Leonardo DiCaprio, will easily fly in, as will Clint Eastwood’s “Million Dollar Baby,” starring Hilary Swank as a thirtysomething female boxer who comes to look upon her trainer (Eastwood) as a father figure. Alexander Payne’s timely comedy “Sideways,” starring character actor Paul Giamatti as a struggling author unable to move his life forward, also seems sure of sliding into the top category.
Strong contenders: Marc Forster’s “Finding Neverland,” starring Johnny Depp as “Peter Pan” playwright J.M. Barrie, has many supporters, though its lack of box-office impact despite strong reviews may hold it back. Taylor Hackford’s “Ray,” a biography of the late, great Ray Charles, could also slip in, especially in light of the powerhouse performance by Jamie Foxx in the title role. Michael Gondry’s “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” starring Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet in a mind-bending comedy about a questionable medical prospect that allows patients to forget the pain of past love affairs, has attracted buzz since its release last March and may prove irresistible to academy voters.
Also receiving strong critical support is Terry George’s “Hotel Rwanda.” The acclaimed fact-based drama stars Don Cheadle as Paul Rusesabagina, a hotel manager using his well-honed management skills to save 1,200 refugees in 1994 during the Rwandan genocide.
Long shots: Joshua Marston’s eye-opening “Maria Full of Grace” stars gifted newcomer Catalina Sandino Moreno as a teenager ingesting and then transporting drugs from Colombia. Although seemingly destined for the best-animated film category, Brad Bird’s computer-generated “The Incredibles” could find a spot in the live-action category, especially after it recently won a best-picture nomination for the Producers Guild of America awards. Some members of Hollywood’s elite are predicting that Michael Moore’s anti-Bush documentary, “Fahrenheit 9/11,” will take one of the five slots in the best-picture category. (He refused to enter it in the documentary category.) Unfortunately for Moore, the president won a second term and Tinsel Town celebrates winners, not losers.
Dark horse: Director Bill Condon’s surprisingly timely “Kinsey” is a biography of researcher Alfred Kinsey (Liam Neeson) whose studies on the sex habits of Americans rocked established views in the late 1940s and 50s.
Best Actor
Sure shots: Cheadle, Depp, DiCaprio and Giamatti should all be on the ballot, but one name – Jamie Foxx – will dominate due to his striking work as Ray Charles.
Strong Contenders: Never count out Jeff Bridges, who remains one of Hollywood’s most respected and dependable performers. His work as an emotionally shattered father and husband anchored director Tod Williams’ drama “The Door in the Floor,” based on a section of John Irving’s novel “A Widow for One Year.” Carrey did an impressive job in “Eternal Sunshine” and might be recognized.
Long shots: Like Foxx, Kevin Spacey brought to life a popular singer, Bobby Darin, in “Beyond the Sea,” but his strong performance failed to save the film, which he also directed.
Dark horse: Give Kevin Bacon credit for taking a genuine gamble with “The Woodsman,” which casts him as a child molester adjusting to life after a 12-year prison sentence. Bacon’s work may be worth applauding, but the picture’s creepy character makes it a title most people would want to avoid.
Best Actress
Sure shots: Annette Bening earned raves for her performance as a theatrical diva in “Being Julia,” and the actress, who’s married to Warren Beatty, is a Hollywood insider, which always helps. Swank, who won an Oscar as best actress for “Boys Don’t Cry,” is a knockout in “Million Dollar Baby.”
Strong contenders: British actress Imelda Staunton has generated critical support for playing a quiet woman who performs abortions on needy young women in Mike Leigh’s lauded drama “Vera Drake.” Another British performer, Kate Winslet, plays a brightly adorned, romantically driven character in “Eternal Sunshine,” something she contrasts in “Finding Neverland.” She deserves a nomination for her work with Carrey.
Long shots: French actress Julie Delpy offers an enchanting performance as she re-teams with Ethan Hawke in director Richard Linklater’s dialogue-driven sequel “Before Sunset.” The critical buzz around the film could help her. Newcomer Catalina Sandino Moreno carries the timely “Maria Full of Grace,” giving a natural performance as an often ill-tempered teen.
Dark horse: Hollywood rarely rewards women in action films, but Uma Thurman deserves applause for her work as a smart-talking, samurai-wielding avenger in Quentin Tarantino’s “Kill Bill – Vol. 2.”
Best Supporting Actor
Sure shots: British actor Clive Owen, who seems destined to be the next James Bond, lashes out in Mike Nichols’ adult ensemble drama “Closer,” while Thomas Hayden Church creates a memorable out-of-control engaged bachelor sowing his wild oats for the last time in “Sideways.”
Strong contenders: Jamie Foxx balances Tom Cruise in “Collateral,” and Morgan Freeman provides the voice of reason as an aging boxer in “Million Dollar Baby.”
Long shots: Twelve-year-old British child actor Freddie Highmore steals scenes from Depp – no easy task – as a fatherless youngster in “Finding Neverland.” Mark Wahlberg, who has never been taken seriously as an actor, shocked his critics with his winning performance as a firefighter with new-age beliefs in director David O. Russell’s enjoyably quirky “I Heart Huckabees.”
Dark horse: Tarantino wrote the villain role in “Kill Bill – Vol. 2” for Warren Beatty, who dropped out shortly before the start of production. B-movie favorite David Carradine of TV’s “Kung Fu” stepped into the role, embraced the evilness of his character and created someone simultaneously charming and chilling.
Best Supporting Actress
Sure shots: Virginia Madsen, whose career fizzled after misses such as “The Hot Spot,” waited years for the right script, and she found it with “Sideways,” which casts her as an insightful waitress with a free spirit and loving heart. Stage and screen actress Laura Linney also seems positioned for a nomination thanks to “Kinsey,” which casts her as an open-minded wife working with her husband on sex research that sometimes requires her to be a participant.
Strong contenders: Twenty-three-year-old Natalie Portman, who also enjoyed success with “Garden State,” tackles an adult role as a stripper caught in a four-way emotional battle in “Closer.” Cate Blanchett, whose work is also on display in “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou,” brings Katharine Hepburn to life and reflects the actress’ deep feelings for Howard Hughes in “The Aviator.”
Long shots: The talented Winslet could be named for “Finding Neverland.” She plays a cash-strapped single mother who refuses to let her failing health overwhelm the deep love she feels for her children. Also, Meryl Streep can never be counted out. Academy voters may respond to her work as a mother using her ill-fated son as an instrument of power in director Jonathan Demme’s underrated remake of “The Manchurian Candidate.”
Dark horse: Although James L. Brooks made many missteps in the uneven romantic comedy “Spanglish,” the director did bring out the best in Cloris Leachman. The veteran actress quickly filled in when an illness kept Anne Bancroft from the role of a seemingly self-centered mother trying to teach her grown daughter some life lessons. Leachman gives the disappointing picture some much-needed spark.
Best Director
Just one name: Martin Scorsese. The famed filmmaker has made an old-school Hollywood epic with “The Aviator,” and he has never won an Academy Award despite directing “Taxi Driver,” “Raging Bull” and “GoodFellas.” “The Aviator” may not be in a league with those titles, but it’s still a stunning work, one that should allow Scorsese to finally carry home an Oscar.