By Matthew Jackson
Staff Reporter
HUNTSVILLE — So, the Academy Awards are this Sunday, and those of us who aren’t tuning in to see what’s being worn will be tuning in to see whose taking home the little golden naked man (and no, I’m talking about Jack Nicholson).
There’s a lot to consider when you’re picking the Oscars. You have to think about who won the other major awards (Golden Globes, Critics Choice, DGAs and so forth), who’s won before, the gravity of the roles they played, the genres of films they’re working in, and the affiliations within studios and agencies and all the Hollywood mumbo jumbo in between. So, to simplify, I’m not going to babble on about who I think the winners will be, I’m just going to babble about who the winners should be. If Matthew Jackson, humble Huntsville Item film writer, were an Oscars voter, here’s how the list would look:
Best Picture:
The Nominees are: “Avatar,” “The Blind Side,” “District 9,” “An Education,” “The Hurt Locker,” “Inglourious Basterds,” “Precious,” “A Serious Man,” “Up,” “Up in the Air.”
Matt’s Call: Unless “Up” or “Precious” somehow manages to divide the vote and storm from the rear, the two major contenders here are “Avatar” and “The Hurt Locker.” I enjoyed “Avatar,” but it’s not best picture. It’s visually stunning but emotionally dull, preachy, and predictable. On the other hand, “The Hurt Locker” is one of the most emotionally effective movies I’ve seen in a long time, and a movie that really and truly speaks to our age. So, the Oscar goes to “The Hurt Locker.”
Best Director:
The Nominees Are: James Cameron for “Avatar,” Kathryn Bigelow for “The Hurt Locker,” Quentin Tarantino for “Inglourious Basterds,” Lee Daniels for “Precious,” and Jason Reitman for “Up in the Air.”
Matt’s Call: James Cameron is a great filmmaker, but give even a remotely competent director $300 million and he’ll make a blockbuster. Bigelow, who’s been making under the radar wonders for years, managed to make something beautiful even amid the rough-hewn edges of her story, and walked a fine line between profundity and popcorn thriller prowess. It would also be nice to see a chick win this award for a change, so the Oscar goes to Kathryn Bigelow.
Best Actor:
The Nominees Are: Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart,” George Clooney in “Up in the Air,” Colin Firth in “A Single Man,” Morgan Freeman in “Invictus,” and Jeremy Renner in “The Hurt Locker.”
Matt’s Call: I’d love to see Morgan Freeman get the big one, but it seems too easy that he’d win it by playing Nelson Mandela. Likewise I’d love to see a Firth win, but it seems like he’s just getting started. Jeff Bridges is one of the great American actors, and the fact that he hasn’t won this by now is a crime, so the Oscar goes to Jeff Bridges.
Best Actress:
The Nominees Are: Sandra Bullock in “The Blind Side,” Helen Mirren in “The Last Station,” Carey Mulligan in “An Education,” Gabourey Sidibe in “Precious” and Meryl Streep in “Julie and Julia.”
Matt’s Call: It’s great that young talents like Mulligan and Sidibe are up for this award, but I’m going to go with the old guard here. I’m going to get in a lot of trouble with readers for saying this, but putting Sandra Bullock in a tearjerker does not make her a great actress, and Streep, though sublime as Julia Child, has done far better. Therefore, the Oscar goes to bona fide Screen Goddess Dame Helen Mirren.
Best Supporting Actor:
The Nominees Are: Matt Damon in “Invictus,” Woody Harrelson in “The Messenger,” Christopher Plummer in “The Last Station,” Stanley Tucci in “The Lovely Bones” and Christoph Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds.”
Matt’s Call: A demented Nazi who is at once hilarious and terrifying is the only one who could get this award. The Oscar goes to Christoph Waltz.
Best Supporting Actress:
The Nominees Are: Penelope Cruz in “Nine,” Vera Farmiga in “Up in the Air,” Maggie Gyllenhaal in “Crazy Heart,” Anna Kendrick in “Up in the Air” and Mo’Nique in “Precious.”
Matt’s Call: You gotta love a comedienne who goes for a heart-wrenching emotional core with absolute sincerity and lands it all the way. The Oscar goes to Mo’Nique.
That does it for me. The Oscars are Sunday night at 7 p.m. on ABC. I’ll be watching, shouting like I’m at the Super Bowl.
