It comes that time of year, yes I know it, you know it, we all know it. The Academy Awards also known as the Oscars. Some of the films nominated this year may come as a surprise as no one expected it. And the Best Picture nominees were quite a surprise. Lord of the Rings: Return of the King is nominated, okay it was for certain that would get nominated so thats not a shocker. Lost in Translation is nominated and definetely deserved it, so not a shocker. Master and Commander: Far Side of the World is nominated and although it is a good movie, I don't think its oscar calibur. Its not a shocker that Master and Commander got nominated because it looks like a film that the academy would eat up. Mystic River is nominated, not a shocker as it was an excelent film and deserved it. And finally Seabiscuit is nominated and yes this one is a shocker. Seabiscuit is a good film, but no one expected a film like this would get nominated over films like Cold Mountain, Big Fish and The Last Samurai. Those three films are easily films that the academy would nominate, its their type of films. The biggest shocker of all though was the fact that Cold Mountain was supposedly going to be nominated for Best Picture. The general audience sure thought that this was the case, but the academy fooled everyone. To add to that, Nicole Kidman was knocked down and didn't get a nomination for Best Actress.
Now, I'm going to address who should win the oscar from the nominations listed and I'm going to predict who the academy will choose to win. I will also place certain films or people that were overlooked, meaning they weren't nominated, but definetely should have been. It doesn;t neccessarily mean that the ones I've placed as "overlooked" should win, it just means they should have been nominated. Alright, without further due, lets get this started...
Best Art Direction
Ben Van Os (Art Direction); Cecile Heideman (Set Decoration) - Girl with a Pearl Earring
Lilly Kilvert (Art Direction); Gretchen Rau (Set Decoration) - The Last Samurai
Grant Major (Art Direction); Dan Hennah and Alan Lee (Set Decoration) - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
William Sandell (Art Direction); Robert Gould (Set Decoration) - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
Jeannine Oppewall (Art Direction); Leslie Pope (Set Decoration) - Seabiscuit
Should Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Will Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Overlooked: Cold Mountain
Best Cinematography
Cesar Charlone - City of God
John Seale - Cold Mountain
Eduardo Serra - Girl with a Pearl Earring
Russell Boyd - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
John Schwartzman - Seabiscuit
Should Win: Master and Commander
Will Win: Master and Commander
Overlooked: Lost in Translation
Best Costume Design
Dien van Straalen - Girl with a Pearl Earring
Ngila Dickson - The Last Samurai
Ngila Dickson and Richard Taylor - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Wendy Stites - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
Judianna Makovsky - Seabiscuit
Should Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Will Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Overlooked: Cold Mountain
Best Film Editing
Daniel Rezende - City of God
Walter Murch - Cold Mountain
Jamie Selkirk - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Lee Smith - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
William Goldenberg - Seabiscuit
Should Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Will Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Overlooked: Lost in Translation
Best Makeup
Richard Taylor and Peter King - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Edouard Henriques III and Yolanda Toussieng - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
Ve Neill and Martin Samuel - Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Should Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Will Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Overlooked: 28 Days Later
Best Original Score
Danny Elfman - Big Fish
Garbriel Yared - Cold Mountain
Thomas Newman - Finding Nemo
James Horner - House of Sand and Fog
Howard Shore - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Should Win: Cold Mountain
Will Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Overlooked: Kill Bill Vol. 1
Best Original Song
"Into the West" - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Music and Lyric by Fran Walsh and Howard Shore and Annie Lennox
"A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow" - A Mighty Wind
Music and Lyric by Michael McKean and Annette O'Toole
"Scarlet Tide" - Cold Mountain
Music and Lyric by T Bone Burnett and Elvis Costello
"The Triplets of Belleville" - The Triplets of Belleville
Music by Benoit Charest; Lyric by Sylvain Chomet
"You Will Be My Ain True Love" - Cold Mountain
Music and Lyric by Sting
Should Win: "Scarlet Tide" - Cold Mountain
Will Win: "Into the West" - Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Overlooked: "Along in Kyoto" - Lost in Translation
Best Sound
Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer and Jeff Wexler - The Last Samurai
Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges and Hammond Peek - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Paul Massey, D.M. Hemphill and Arthur Rochester - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
Christopher Boyes, David Parker, David Campbell and Lee Orloff - Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer and Tod A. Maitland - Seabiscuit
Should Win: Master and Commander
Will Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Overlooked: Kill Bill Vol. 1
Best Sound Editing
Gary Rydstrom and Michael Silvers - Finding Nemo
Richard King - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
Christopher Boyes and George Watters II - Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Should Win: Master and Commander
Will Win: Master and Commander
Overlooked: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Best Visual Effects
Jim Rygiel, Joe Letteri, Randall William Cook and Alex Funke - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Daniel Sudick, Stefen Fangmeier, Nathan McGuinness and Robert Stromberg - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson and Terry Frazee - Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Should Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Will Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Overlooked: X2: X-Men United
Best Animated Film
Brother Bear
Finding Nemo
The Triplets of Belleville
Should Win: Finding Nemo
Will Win: Finding Nemo
Overlooked: N/A
Best Adapted Screenplay
Robert Pulcini and Shari Springer Berman - American Splendor
Braulio Mantovani - City of God
Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens and Peter Jackson - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Brian Helgeland - Mystic River
Gary Ross - Seabiscuit
Should Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Will Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Overlooked: Cold Mountain
Best Original Screenplay
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Denys Arcand - The Barbarian Invasions
Steven Knight - Dirty Pretty Things
Andrew Stanton, Bob Peterson and David Reynolds - Finding Nemo
Jim Sheridan, Naomi Sheridan and Kirsten Sheridan - In America
Sofia Coppola - Lost in Translation
Should Win: Lost in Translation
Will Win: Lost in Translation
Overlooked: 21 Grams
Best Supporting Actress
Shohreh Aghdashloo - House of Sand and Fog
Patricia Clarkson - Pieces of April
Marcia Gay Harden - Mystic River
Holly Hunter - Thirteen
Renée Zellweger - Cold Mountain
Should Win: Holly Hunter for Thirteen
Will Win: Renee Zellweger for Cold Mountain
Overlooked: Christina Ricci for Monster
Best Supporting Actor
Alec Baldwin - The Cooler
Benicio Del Toro - 21 Grams
Djimon Hounsou - In America
Tim Robbins - Mystic River
Ken Watanabe - The Last Samurai
Should Win: Benicio Del Toro for 21 Grams
Will Win: Tim Robbins for Mystic River
Overlooked: Sean Astin for Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Best Actress
Keisha Castle-Hughes - Whale Rider
Diane Keaton - Something's Gotta Give
Samantha Morton - In America
Charlize Theron - Monster
Naomi Watts - 21 Grams
Should Win: Naomi Watts for 21 Grams
Will Win: Charlize Theron for Monster
Overlooked: Scarlett Johansson for Lost in Translation
Best Actor
Johnny Depp - Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Ben Kingsley - House of Sand and Fog
Jude Law - Cold Mountain
Bill Murray - Lost in Translation
Sean Penn - Mystic River
Should Win: Sean Penn for Mystic River
Will Win: Sean Penn for Mystic River
Overlooked: Nicholas Cage for Matchstick Men
Best Director
Fernando Meirelles - City of God
Peter Jackson - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Sofia Coppola - Lost in Translation
Peter Weir - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
Clint Eastwood - Mystic River
Should Win: Peter Jackson for Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Will Win: Peter Jackson for Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Overlooked: Alejandro González Iñárritu for 21 Grams
Best Picture
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Lost in Translation
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
Mystic River
Seabiscuit
Should Win: Lost in Translation
Will Win: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Overlooked: 21 Grams