AVATAR
DISTRICT 9
AN EDUCATION
THE HURT LOCKER
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
INVICTUS
PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL 'PUSH' BY SAPPHIRE
STAR TREK
UP
UP IN THE AIR
Here are the nominees for the USC Scripter Award, which coincides with the Writers Guild nominees to give us our best hypothesis on what the Best Adapted Screenplay award may look like at Oscar time.
CRAZY HEART
DISTRICT 9
AN EDUCATION
PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL 'PUSH' BY SAPPHIRE
UP IN THE AIR
WHAT THIS MEANS
Avatar, The Hurt Locker, and Up in the Air are surefire nominees for Best Picture come Oscar night. Inglourious Basterds and Precious are good bets to be nominated as well. The most noticeable piece of information to stem from these announcements is the inclusion of District 9. While I personally thought District 9 was a very overrated film, I thought it had admirable qualities and was richly deserving of some technical nominations. I was not expecting such love from the producers or the writers with this film. With that being said, District 9 is building up a lot of momentum seemingly out of nowhere right now. It will be interesting to see if Neill Blomkamp receives a DGA nomination on Thursday. If he does, then District 9 will suddenly be a contender for the Best Picture Oscar. If not, then I think the best it could hope for is recognition from the Writers Guild, a possible Best Adapted Screenplay nomination, and a few technical nods as well. I also think there is a lot of support for Star Trek within the industry. Critics and audiences alike thought it was the most entertaining film of the year and one of the most impressive achievements of 2009. However, I don't think the PGA nod will materialize into a Best Picture Oscar nomination. Star Trek is still a sci-fi motion picture, and the Academy has never really embraced sci-fi throughout its illustrious history. If they are going down that road this year, it will most likely be with Avatar and nothing more. I still think A Serious Man has a great shot at being nominated for Best Picture because it is without question one of the more superior filmmaking achievements of 2009. Also, Up stands a terrific chance of being the first animated film to be nominated for Best Picture since Beauty and the Beast in 1991. The power of the Clint will carry Invictus towards the finish line, and Lone Scherfig's An Education will be there as well. But as of right now, I think it is a three-horse race between Avatar, The Hurt Locker, and Up in the Air. While The Hurt Locker may turn out to be the definitive film on the Iraqi war, and Up in the Air may be the film that best represents the current state of mind in American culture, I have a funny feeling that this will be the year of James Cameron and Avatar. I know it will take a lot for the Academy to embrace sci-fi and that the actors are very hesitant on voting for a technically resonant film. But Avatar is the film of the moment. The people and the critics have spoken on the matter. Avatar is the film of 2009 and I think that may just be enough to give Cameron some more Oscars.
No comments:
Post a Comment