Saturday, Mar. 22, 2003
My thoughts on the 2003 Oscars, posted at 4:45 p.m.
Epiphany in Baltimore has moved to epiphanyinbaltimore.blogspot.com I'm glad the Oscars weren't cancelled. Call me shallow, but I like being able to focus on something else as the world as we know it crumbles.Here are my thoughts:
Best Picture:
Will Win:Chicago
Should Win: The Hours
Should Win, though not nominated:Bowling for Columbine
The overrated, though enjoyable, steamroller that is Chicago will handily win. I did enjoy the film, though I do think it's the 4th or 5th most deserving film nominated. Out of those nominated, The Hours made me feel things I haven't ever felt about a movie before, made me look at the world a bit differently - I found it astounding, flawlessly acted and directed. This deserves it. Out of those not nominated, I'd nominate Bowling for Columbine, though I'm not sure I would vote for it over The Hours. I would have also liked to have seen Adaptation (in my top 3 this year), Minority Report (best big summer movie in years, stays with you) or Talk to Her (odd, entrancing) amongst the nominees, as all were excellent.
Best Actor:
Will Win:Jack Nicholson
Should Win: Daniel Day-Lewis
Should Win, though not nominated:Derek Luke, Antwone Fisher
Not a very strong category. I didn't think Nicholson buried himself in his performance like everyone else thought he did; I never forgot he was Jack, and felt like Kathy Bates walked away with the movie anyway. That the film was a disappointing one (enjoyable, but nowhere near as good as the writer/director's previous Election) that patronized midwesterners didn't help. Cage was good in Adaptation, but upstaged by both his supporting actors. Brody was fine in The Pianist, but just didn't have the magnetism that Tom Hanks had in Cast Away to hold the screen for nearly a half hour with no dialogue or music. That leaves Day-Lewis and Caine. While I haven't seen The Quiet American, I was quite impressed with Day-Lewis' hammy acting in Gangs of New York; he made that film, almost as much as Martin Scorsese did. Not to say I loved the film, but it was the kind of big-budget, big-hearted production that I have to admire. Day-Lewis was a big part of that, so he deserves to win. However, I would rather see Derek Luke taking home the trophy for his charismatic debut performance as the title character in Antwone Fisher.
Best Actress:
Will Win:Nicole Kidman
Should Win: Kidman
Should have been nominated:none. Maybe Maggie Glyennhall for Secretary
It's not about the nose and it's not about the accent. It's about that scene at the train station. Wow. That is acting at its finest - Kidman is phenomenal. Even though the role wasn't huge, I feel like her only competition is Julianne Moore for Far From Heaven. While Moore was solid in that film, she was riveting playing the much more difficult (almost wordless) role in The Hours, so hopefully she'll win for that instead. This is a pretty strong category. I didn't see Diane Lane or Salma Hayek's respective films, but I hope that Renee Zelwegger does not win. She pulled it off, yes, but didn't transcend like Zeta-Jones did. I could see any number of actresses playing Zelweggar's role (including Kidman, the original choice for the role), and feel like Zelweggar's voice was too flat for a nomination in a musical.
Best Supporting Actor:
Will Win:Chris Cooper
Should Win: Cooper
Should Have been nominated:Randy Quaid, Far From Heaven; Denzel Washington, Antwone Fisher
The night's strongest category, as everyone was excellent and anyone could win. I'll go for Cooper, as he's been great in a number of fine films in recent years (October Sky, American Beauty, Great Expectations), and was able to make his pretty disgusting character incredibly magnetic and worthy of Meryl Streep's affection. However, Reilly is always incredibly strong, and was integral to all four films he was in. Still, I've got to go against him because I feel like "Mr. Cellophane" was only the 3rd best song of the musical, and am not even sure if that was the best film to nominate him for. Walken was great, but lacked one big scene. Harris had two great scenes, but his role was pretty small otherwise. Newman might get the age vote. We'll see. It will be interesting. I'm rooting for Cooper, but won't be disappointed if Reilly or Harris win.
Best Supporting Actress:
Will Win:Catherine Zeta-Jones
Should Win: The Julianne Moore
Should have been nominated: Viola Davis, Antwone Fisher
Moore was incredible and should win. What she can do without words is enthralling. That's probably why I enjoyed Viola Davis' scene so much in Antwone Fisher; like Moore's, it was almost wordless, yet she conveyed so much with her eyes. Otherwise, this is a strong category. Streep (funny and sexy), Zeta-Jones (there's a reason she pretty much blew everyone else off the screen in Chicago), and Bates (I still feel like she should have won for Dolores Claiborne and Primary Colors) were incredible. Latifah was fine, too. This would be a tough call if it weren't for Moore's superb performance.
Best Director:
Will Win:Martin Scorsese
Should Win: Stephen Daldry, The Hours
Should Win, though not nominated:Peter Jackson, LOTR
It's criminal that Peter Jackson wasn't nominated; he'd be a pretty clear choice to be the victor here. Scorsese was the victim of editing butchers, or his film would have been a bit more cohesive. As it was, it was expansive and distinctive - I won't be too disappointed when he wins. Polanski's work was okay, but slow - especially in the last 40 minutes. Daldry's film had such vision and detail, that I've got to root for that one, though. I will only be disappointed if Rob Marshall wins; as fun as Chicago was, it was fun because it felt like a filmed play, not like a movie. Almodovar's work in Talk to Her was fine, but I think it's overshadowed by other, better films.
Best Original Screenplay:
Will Win:My Big Fat Greek Wedding
Should Win: Anything But.
Should Win, though not nominated:Igby Goes Down
It will be pretty sad when Nia Vardolos' 90-minute sitcom wins, but I see the Latino vote splitting the two Spanish-speaking films, both of which are far superior. Far From Heaven has a decent shot, but that film's script wasn't what was impressive - it was the actors and cinematography.
Best Adapted Screenplay:
Will Win:The Hours
Should Win: The Hours
Should Win, though not nominated:Catch Me If You Can
This is a tough category - it all boils down to Adaptation vs. The Hours. (About a Boy, another strong nominee here, probably doesn't have a shot against those two.) Everyone I know who has read The Hours and then saw the movie was happy with the adaptation, which leads me to believe it was a strong one. And even though I think Adaptation was the best script of the year, I feel like calling it an adapted screenplay is too left-field for it to get my vote. No way this is an adapted screenplay. Sorry. (If you've seen the film, you know what I'm talking about.)