Oscars 2013: My Picks for Who Will Win/Who Should Win

Greetings, all! It has been a while since I last blogged, but it has been quite a busy semester. Here are my picks (before the show!) of the winners of tonight's Oscars!

Best Picture
Will Win: Argo 
This one is no question. Argo lost a LOT of momentum when Ben Affleck was not nominated for Director, but since then it has swept every single major awards show, including the Golden Globes, Director's Guild, Screen Actor's Guild, Producer's Guild, and everything in-between. It's the favorite to take home the Gold. 
Should Win: Les Miserables/Zero Dark Thirty/Amour/The Master
The Master, by far the biggest snub of the Oscars this year, was the greatest film I saw this year. A virtuoso piece of filmmaking, with the best writing, acting, and look of anything that came out this year. But since it is not even nominated for Best Picture (nor is the incredible Paul Thomas Anderson for directing) I have to choose between Les Mis, Zero Dark Thirty, and Amour. All incredible movies in their own right, that I believe are more deserving of the award than Argo or the other favorite, Lincoln. 

Best Director
Will Win: Steven Spielberg/Ang Lee (Lincoln/Life of Pi)
These are the only two I can see winning the Best Director Oscar. There were too many snubs to count in this category, including Tom Hooper for Les Mis, Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty, and Ben Affleck for Argo. But out of those nominated, Spielberg or Lee will take it home. 
Should Win: Paul Thomas Anderson, The Master
I still cannot get over how The Master was snubbed out of the two categories it most deserved. PTA made yet another "masterful" film, one that was more affecting than anything else nominated. But, God forbid people have to think while watching a movie. 

Best Actor
Will Win: Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln
This is one of the only categories this year that is locked in. Day-Lewis will win this by a long shot, and even though I wasn't one of the biggest fans of Lincoln, Day-Lewis did what he usually does and churned out a great performance. 
Should Win: Joaquin Phoenix, The Master
I understand that Daniel Day-Lewis made another great movie, but I feel like Phoenix's role in the Master was better than Day-Lewis. He got so into his role, emotionally and physically, and I believe he deserves the award more than DDL. 

Best Actress
Will Win: Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook
This category is also a lock. Jennifer Lawrence has won almost every award coming to the Oscars, and she should be the one taking the award. 
Should Win: Emmanuelle Riva, Amour
The oldest Best Actress nominee ever, Riva churned out a heart wrenching performance of a stroke victim in the final months in her life. This was one of the most heartfelt films in recent memory, and Riva was incredible. 

Best Supporting Actor
Will Win: Robert DeNiro, Silver Linings Playbook
This is a category in which everyone nominated could take home the award. In my opinion, I think that the Academy will give it to DeNiro to make up for it not winning Picture or Director. 
Should Win: Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master
When I first saw The Master, I thought for sure that PSH would be the favorite to win by far. His performance was incredible, as usual, and he deserves to take this Oscar more than anyone else nominated. 

Best Supporting Actress
Will Win: Anne Hathaway, Les Miserables
Hathaway will win this because of her incredible turn as Fantine in Les Mis, mainly for her one-shot rendition of the beautiful I Dreamed A Dream. She has been the favorite to win all season. 
Should Win: Helen Hunt, The Sessions
As much as I love and adore Hathaway and Les Mis, I believe that Helen Hunt had a better and "exposed" role as a sex surrogate in The Sessions. The movie, also snubbed in the Best Actor and Best Picture categories, was sweet and very genuine, and I think Helen Hunt deserves the award. 

Movie Review: The Dark Knight Rises

This is the moment that everyone has been waiting for. After four long years of hush-hush secrets, teaser trailers, posters, and everything in-between, The Dark Knight has Risen. And Christopher Nolan has created a near flawless masterpiece that meets and exceeds fan expectations. We start with a snippet of Commissioner Gordon speaking at Harvey "Two-Face" Dent's funeral from The Dark Knight, after Batman has taken the fall for Dent's crimes. We then cut to eight years later. Our prologue resumes with a beautiful airplane escape sequence that gives us our first look at the menacing Bane. It is Harvey Dent Day in Gotham. The new Dent Law has put thousands of criminals behind bars, and Gotham is now virtually crime-free thanks to Dent's legacy. Bruce Wayne has been a social recluse, not coming out of his chambers for eight years, nor has Batman come out of the cave. Bruce then hears rumors of a "masked man" named Bane, who is beginning to run an underground crime operation in Gotham. He then decides to see if he still has it, and tries to don the Batsuit for the first time in eight years. We are introduced to a slew of new characters, including petty cat burglar Selina Kyle (never referenced as Catwoman in the movie), rookie cop John Blake, new Wayne Enterprises investor (and eventually CEO) Miranda Tate, and several other minor characters that fit into Bane's plan. Alfred and Lucius Fox return as Bruce Wayne's butler and technological advisor, respectively. So, Bane wreaks havoc on Gotham, turning it into a new "republic" where he is basically judge, jury, and executioner. He has created a nuclear bomb from an energy source that Wayne Enterprises had built, and threatens to detonate the city to finally purge Gotham of its corrupt injustice. Fitting to the theme of the film, Batman must "rise" several times, both literally and symbolically. I will not give any further plot detail. However, in its last hour, there are several plot twists and character revelations that really take the story further than anyone could have imagined. The ending of the film will have you on the edge of your seat, begging for more.

This film is, to say the least, a masterpiece. First, Christopher Nolan's direction is tremendous. He has a vision that I don't think any director in Hollywood today can match. He delivers a films that the fans wanted, that gives us closure, that throws us for a loop and then pulls us right back in. The look of the film was beautiful. From the gloomy streets of Gotham to the prison that Bruce is held in for a good portion of the movie. The soundtrack was as epic as the movie itself, with Hans Zimmer coming full circle, mixing snippets of previous Dark Knight soundtracks with new material (including the haunting "Rise" chant). The one complaint I did have was at times, the soundtrack got a little loud and boomy during dialogue, and it got a little hard to understand some of the characters at those moments. The Nolan Brothers, Christopher and Jonathan, who co-wrote the script, did a fantastic job at tying up everything that needed to be, bringing the whole story full circle. The striking allegories between some of America's current crises and Gotham was very well and subtly done. The performances in the movie were Oscar-worthy. Christian Bale delivers his best performance as Bruce Wayne and his alter-ego, providing raw emotion not seen in his previous renditions, especially in the movies third act. Anne Hathaway was the PERFECT choice to play Selina Kyle, and she delivers a beautiful (both physical and otherwise) performance. She looks great in her outfit. Tom Hardy was also perfect to play the physically brooding character Bane. He is the only villain in the series who is both a physical AND intellectual equal of Batman. He also provides a physical representation of one of the most iconic images from the Batman comics. His face is concealed by a mask that disperses pain medicine, due to an injury he suffered early in his origins. Without the medicine, he would be unable to function. Although Hardy's face is hidden with a mask, he does amazing things emotionally with just his eyes, showing through them some of the pain and suffering he has endured throughout his lifetime. His voice, in my opinion, was very well done. He has a very dark sarcastic voice of intelligence, which plays great with his character. He has an overall sense of doom and physicality throughout the movie, up until his last moments. Joseph Gordon-Levitt continues to define himself as a good actor as John Blake, an orphan who befriends Bruce Wayne and is integral in the plot of the movie. Marion Cotillard is striking and beautiful as Miranda Tate, who also provides a twist late in the movie. The returning characters are great as always. I was a little upset over the lack of Alfred in the film, though Michael Caine is great anytime he graces the screen, and provides some of the more subtle emotional punches throughout. Morgan Freeman is also good to see as Lucius Fox, providing some impressive new toys for Batman. And the master Gary Oldman is as good as ever as Commissioner Jim Gordon. And yes, there IS a cameo by Dr. Jonathan Crane, a.k.a. The Scarecrow from Batman Begins. The new Bat Gadgets were great. The "Bat", the flying hover pod type vehicle seen in the trailers was epic in every sense of the word, soaring through Gotham's streets and seemingly defying gravity. I just can't praise this movie enough. Christopher Nolan has taken the story full circle, tying up (almost) every loose end made throughout the series, and to quote Bruce Wayne, may not be the end that everyone wanted, but it is the end that everyone needed. His references to his previous Dark Knight movies was also smartly done ("I flipped a coin"). The movie is left open just enough for fans to want more, yet have a satisfying sense of closure. Nolan has redefined not just Batman, nor superheroes, but the entire film industry, proving that superheroes do not have to be campy, but can be serious and realistic. He has created a Batman that everyone can relate to. No other Batman film, nor will one ever, match what Nolan was able to accomplish. This is the motion picture event that everyone, superhero fan or not, needs to see. While Bane may not match the masterful performance of Heath Ledger as The Joker, the movie overall was better to me than The Dark Knight. If this isn't the superhero movie to win Best Picture, no superhero movie ever will. It was epic in every sense of the word, and a fitting, grand conclusion that every fan has dreamed of. The most amazing, large, grand scale, BEST, motion picture I have ever seen. Christopher Nolan, thank you. You not only matched fans expectations, you exceeded them.

Rating: A+++