The Official 2015 Oscar Discussion/Contest Thread

[Still Servant]

Well, it's getting to be that time of year again. Once the year changes, that's when we start really turning our attention to Oscar season. Oscar nominations don't come out until January 15, but I thought we could get some conversation and predictions going before that.

Once we have the official list of nominations, we will change the name of the thread and start taking submissions. You have until showtime on February 22, 2015 to get your picks in, so there's no rush. Here are the rules just to refresh some memories:

This is the sixth year I'm running the Oscar contest. We had 9 participants last year, which is good, but I still think we can do better. Especially if Feev graces us with his presence this year. :angry: We always have a lot of fun predicting the winners and seeing who comes out on top. It's just for fun.

IMPORTANT: Don't forget the tie breaker. It's simple: Basically, everybody will submit their choices like usual, except they will also add which film they think will win the most Oscars and give a number. In case of a tie, who ever has the closest number without going over is the winner.

Predictions have to be in by showtime, so there is no rush to post them. We still have a few months until Oscar night. I myself will be waiting for the last possible moment to post my predictions. I still have films to watch, buzz to follow and articles to read.

Remember, these are just educated guesses. None of us have seen every film nominated and I doubt if anybody has seen any of the documentary short subject nominees. Just make an educated guess. Or an uneducated guess.

Best Picture

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Selma”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Actor

Steve Carell - “Foxcatcher”
Bradley Cooper - “American Sniper”
Benedict Cumberbatch - “The Imitation Game”
Michael Keaton - “Birdman”
Eddie Redmayne - “The Theory of Everything”

Best Actress

Marion Cotillard - “Two Days, One Night”
Felicity Jones - “The Theory of Everything”
Julianne Moore - “Still Alice”
Rosamund Pike - “Gone Girl”
Reese Witherspoon - “Wild”

Best Supporting Actor

Robert Duvall - “The Judge”
Ethan Hawke - “Boyhood”
Edward Norton - “Birdman”
Mark Ruffalo - “Foxcatcher”
J.K. Simmons - “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress

Patricia Arquette - “Boyhood”
Laura Dern - “Wild”
Keira Knightley - “The Imitation Game”
Emma Stone - “Birdman”
Meryl Streep - “Into the Woods”

Best Director

Alejandro González Iñárritu - “Birdman”
Richard Linklater - “Boyhood”
Bennett Miller - “Foxcatcher”
Wes Anderson - “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Morten Tyldum - “The Imitation Game”

Best Animated Feature Film

“Big Hero 6″
“The Boxtrolls”
“How to Train Your Dragon 2″
“Song of the Sea”
“The Tale of the Princess Kaguya”

Best Adapted Screenplay

“American Sniper”
“The Imitation Game”
“Inherent Vice”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Screenplay

“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Nightcrawler”

Best Cinematography

“Birdman”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Ida”
“Mr. Turner”
“Unbroken”

Best Visual Effects

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier”
“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”
“Interstellar”
“X-Men: Days of Future Past”

Best Documentary Feature

“Citizenfour”
“Finding Vivian Maier”
“Last Days in Vietnam”
“The Salt of the Earth”
“Virunga”

Best Documentary Short Subject

“Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1″
“Joanna”
“Our Curse”
“The Reaper”
“White Earth”

Best Film Editing

“American Sniper”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Song

“Everything Is Awesome” from “The Lego Movie”
“Glory,” from “Selma”
“Grateful,” from “Beyond the Lights”
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” from “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me”
“Lost Stars,” from “Begin Again”

Best Production Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Into the Woods”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Live Action Short Film

“Aya”
“Boogaloo and Graham”
“Butter Lamp (La Lampe au Beurre de Yak)”
“Parvaneh”
“The Phone Call”

Best Animated Short Film

“The Bigger Picture”
“The Dam Keeper”
“Feast”
“Me and my Moulton”
“A Single Life”

Best Sound Editing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”

Best Sound Mixing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”
“Whiplash”

Best Costume Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Inherent Vice”
“Into the Woods”
“Maleficent”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Foreign Language Film

“Ida”
“Leviathan”
“Tangerines”
“Timbuktu”
“Wild Tales”

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”

Best Original Score

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Mr. Turner”
“The Theory of Everything”

Past results:

2010 results
Heather - 15
Servant - 14
Turtlex - 14
Cody - 8
Seymour - 8
Odetta - 4

2011 results
Heather - 17
Servant - 15
Path - 14
Mattrick - 14
Ricky - 12
Merlin - 11
Feev - 8

2012 results
Servant - 14
Heather - 14
Ricky - 14
Stockerlone - 12
Shannon - 11
Thorin- 10
Mattrick - 9
Feev - 8
Garrell - 8
Odetta - 5
Mystima - 4

2013 results
Heather - 20
Servant - 17
Ricky - 15
Matt - 14
Stockerlone - 13
Feev - 12
Pablo - 10

2014 results
Heather - 22
Ricky - 20
Servant - 19
Randall - 16
Pablo - 13
Matt - 10
Mystima - 10
Merlin - 7
Stockerlone - 6

[Mattrick]

To quote Ludacris...I'm comin for that number one spot!

[Heather19]

I think I should become a professional Oscar predictor :lol: I think last year I only got one wrong. I'm pretty out of the loop at the moment, I doubt I've seen any of the films yet, and I don't even know what's nominated for the Golden Globes :(

[mae]

I'm surprised I only participated in the last two, and did pretty poorly, too :(

[Ricky]

I think I should become a professional Oscar predictor :lol: I think last year I only got one wrong. I'm pretty out of the loop at the moment, I doubt I've seen any of the films yet, and I don't even know what's nominated for the Golden Globes :(

Guys, don't let her fool you! Her "I'm pretty out of the loop" comment is all part of her plan! She wants us to think that she's out of the loop. That way we all feel confident right before she swoops in and takes the win!

:lol:

[fernandito]

LOL @ Heather trying to lull us into a false sense of security.

WE KNOW YOUR GAME WENCH.

And Mike, I promise you I'll play this year...

...

:)

[Still Servant]

I'm pretty out of the loop at the moment, I doubt I've seen any of the films yet, and I don't even know what's nominated for the Golden Globes :(

That's what you said last year. <_<

I hardly ever lose these things to my friends and family, so this is an odd feeling. :lol:

[Still Servant]

Note: These are my picks for my favorite performances of the year. These are not who I think will be nominated. Many of the actors I list will not come anywhere close to Oscar consideration. Sadly. Also, keep in mind that I have not seen every film this year.

Best Supporting Actress

Emily Blunt - Into the Woods
Mackenzie Foy - Interstellar
Emma Stone - Birdman
Tilda Swinton - Snowpiercer
Naomi Watts - St. Vincent

Best Supporting Actor

Ethan Hawke - Boyhood
Edward Norton - Birdman
Mark Ruffalo - Foxcatcher
Andy Serkis - Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
J.K. Simmons - Whiplash

Best Actress

Amy Adams - Big Eyes
Essie Davis - The Babadook
Felicity Jones - The Theory of Everything
Rosamund Pike - Gone Girl
Shailene Woodley - The Fault In Our Stars

Best Actor

Steve Carell - Foxcatcher
Tom Hardy - The Drop
Jake Gyllenhaal - Nightcrawler
Michael Keaton - Birdman
Eddie Redmayne - The Theory of Everything

[fernandito]

I don't know how her competition fared but Rosamund Pike absolutely deserves to be on the shortlist for best actress.

She was so fucking creepy in Gone Girl.

[Still Servant]

I don't know how her competition fared but Rosamund Pike absolutely deserves to be on the shortlist for best actress.

She was so fucking creepy in Gone Girl.

Totally agree. It sounds like Julianne Moore will win for Still Alice. I haven't seen it though.

[fernandito]

Is anyone planning on watching American Sniper?

My sister watched it 2 weeks ago and she would not shut up about it.

[Still Servant]

Is anyone planning on watching American Sniper?

My sister watched it 2 weeks ago and she would not shut up about it.

Oh yeah. Really looking forward to it. The trailer made it seem like it was getting a Christmas release, so I was already planning on going the 26th. Instead, it was just limited. Usually a trailer will say something like, "Opens Christmas day, everywhere January 15th." Or something along those lines. I also want to see A Most Violent Year.

[Merlin1958]

As per tradition, I will post a $25 donation to the HF in the winners name.

[Still Servant]

As per tradition, I will post a $25 donation to the HF in the winners name.

Thank you for your contribution!

[Ricky]

I'm not too interested in American Sniper, but really want to see Still Alice (and Cake, too).

[Still Servant]

You're probably going to have to find those elsewhere. Especially Cake.

[Mattrick]

I'll see American Sniper in theatres for sure.

[Shannon]

I'm in. By the way, for all you downloaders out there, the majority of the screeners became available yesterday and today.

Speaking of which, just just just finished Whiplash. Holy. Shit.

[Heather19]

I'm pretty out of the loop at the moment, I doubt I've seen any of the films yet, and I don't even know what's nominated for the Golden Globes :(

That's what you said last year. <_<

I hardly ever lose these things to my friends and family, so this is an odd feeling. :lol:

:lol:

I know. I feel like over the recent years there's very little publicity for the films, or they're just in limited release so I never hear about them except for people mentioning them here. I just had to go look up what Whiplash, Foxcatcher, and Birdman were about :| And honestly they don't sound all that appealing to me. Maybe I'll watch some when they get released on dvd. I know I've complained about this last year too, but I really wish they would nominate some mainstream movies, or at least release a lot of these earlier on so people can watch them. It's hard to route for anything when it's films you've barely heard about. Also the other thing that really peeves me, is that it's the same actors that get nominated every time. I'd love it if Essie Davis gets nominated for The Babadook, or even if the film gets nominated, but I know that'll never happen. It's a shame, because I'd say the film is more a dark emotional drama disguised as a horror film. If there were no supernatural element to it, then it'd have Oscar written all over it.

[mae]

I'd love it if Essie Davis gets nominated for The Babadook, or even if the film gets nominated, but I know that'll never happen. It's a shame, because I'd say the film is more a dark emotional drama disguised as a horror film. If there were no supernatural element to it, then it'd have Oscar written all over it.

Kathy Bates won an Oscar for a horror movie, essentially.

[Ricky]

You're probably going to have to find those elsewhere. Especially Cake.

Hmm, I don't know. I think it depends on how well they do with nominations (Best Actress noms. seem most likely). If they get some more attention, they might get a wider release. Otherwise, I'll just wait for DVD.


And honestly they don't sound all that appealing to me.

I know how you feel. There are always some films that get Oscar buzz (or even nominated) that I'm just not interested in seeing, no matter how much attention they're getting. But then again, there are some films that I watch only because they were nominated, and I end up loving them.


I really wish they would nominate some mainstream movies, or at least release a lot of these earlier on so people can watch them.

Agree with both of those points. I think more people need to realize that a good movie doesn't have to be one that Means Something Important. A great movie can just be something fun and enjoyable. For example, there are great action films, comedies, horrors, etc. that are great because they excel within their genres at the jobs they set out to do--to excite, make you laugh, make you scared, etc. Unfortunately, a lot of the people in the Academy don't seem to realize this and, as a result, most mainstream films aren't even acknowledged.

And yeah, like you said, it would be nice if it wasn't pretty much the same actors getting nominated every year.

[Heather19]

I'd love it if Essie Davis gets nominated for The Babadook, or even if the film gets nominated, but I know that'll never happen. It's a shame, because I'd say the film is more a dark emotional drama disguised as a horror film. If there were no supernatural element to it, then it'd have Oscar written all over it.

Kathy Bates won an Oscar for a horror movie, essentially.

You're right, I forgot about that one. It's definitely in the minority though. I was just looking it up and found this interesting article. http://www.moviesonline.ca/14-oscar-winning-horror-movies/ So out of the 14 films on the list, most only got nominated and won in categories like special effects, makeup, and sound categories. And out of the ones that were nominated for the top awards like film or actors, I wouldn't even classify half of them as horror, such as Jaws and The Silence of the Lambs.

The article also mentions an interesting fact. It's a few years old I believe, but I bet it's very similar.
The Los Angeles Times did a fantastic piece on the Oscars exposing that of their over 5,700 voting members nearly 94% are Caucasian and 77% male and that the average age is 62. People under 50 are less then 14% of the membership. Well I think this easily explains why it's always the same types of films that get nominated, and the same people. The academy definitely has their favorites. Maybe they should switch it up a bit. It'd be refreshing, and I think would appeal to a much wider audience.

[fernandito]

I really wish they would nominate some mainstream movies, or at least release a lot of these earlier on so people can watch them.

Agree with both of those points. I think more people need to realize that a good movie doesn't have to be one that Means Something Important. A great movie can just be something fun and enjoyable. For example, there are great action films, comedies, horrors, etc. that are great because they excel within their genres at the jobs they set out to do--to excite, make you laugh, make you scared, etc. Unfortunately, a lot of the people in the Academy don't seem to realize this and, as a result, most mainstream films aren't even acknowledged.


Agree, so long as the film is deserving of the nomination.

Unfortunately, the Academy is an organization just like any other organization with a certain reputation to uphold, and as such they will vote for films they feel best represent those ideals, however rigid they may be. That's why a film like The Dark Knight was not even considered even though it was one of the best films of 2008, and whose influence has been widespread, spilling across to other genres and franchises.

[Mattrick]

The Dark Knight wasn't nominated solely based on the then 5 nomination system. The Dark Knight was the reason they expanded the best picture nominations in 2009. If it weren't for The Dark Knight, Inception and District 9 wouldn't have gotten nominations. The Dark Knight was a martyr.

[Mattrick]

And Heather, this has been a very strong year for film considering how weak it was shaping up to look. Whiplash is fucking amazing (stress each of these four words, getting louder each word until you're screaming AMAZING). A lot of the great films have been dicked around with limited releases which is a travesty. Let's wait and see what films get released where next Friday.

[Mattrick]

I'm in. By the way, for all you downloaders out there, the majority of the screeners became available yesterday and today.

Speaking of which, just just just finished Whiplash. Holy. Shit.

Yeah, I downloaded and watched that again last night. The last ten minutes are just exhilarating.

Watching Love Is Strange in an hour, one I really wanted to see in theatres but of course, no release, and couldn't even get a screener. I can't go crazy with downloading since I have enough gift cards to see at least 8 films before the Oscars, so I've got to be patient and wait to see what is released. Still no Birdman and no Pawn Sacrifice which is an absolutely shame :(

[fernandito]

The Dark Knight wasn't nominated solely based on the then 5 nomination system.
Nah, they wouldn't have nominated it anyway. The Academy looks down its nose at comic book films. District 9 and Inception aren't comic book films, that's why they were eligible. The Reader was nominated that year for Christ sake. Did anyone even watch that? Does anyone remember it? Gimme a break.



If it weren't for The Dark Knight, Inception and District 9 wouldn't have gotten nominations. The Dark Knight was a martyr.
I guess you could say that TDK was the movie we deserve, but not the one we need right now.

[Mattrick]

The Reader was great. Actually in my rewatch pile right now.

If The Academy looks down on comic adaptations, maybe you can explain nominations for The Dark Knight, American Splendor, History of Violence and a statue for Road To Perdition. It's not as if every movie without a best picture nomination is looked down upon.

[fernandito]

Lol, you mean those consolation prize technical awards? Name big awards - Best Picture, Actor, Actress, Director etc., - that any of those films were nominated for.

The only big category that a comic book film has ever been nominated for was for Ledger's portrayal of The Joker, the Academy simply couldn't ignore a performance of that magnitude.

[Mattrick]

Lol, you mean those consolation prize technical awards? Name big awards - Best Picture, Actor, Actress, Director etc., - that any of those films were nominated for.

The only big category that a comic book film has ever been nominated for was for Ledger's portrayal of The Joker, the Academy simply couldn't ignore a performance of that magnitude.


Dark Knight - Won Best Supporting Actor
Road To Perdition - Won Best Cinematogrpahy. Nominated best supporting actor/sound/score/production design
History of Violence - nominated best supporting actor, adapted screenplay
American Splendor - nominated best adapted screenplay

[fernandito]

Lol, you mean those consolation prize technical awards? Name big awards - Best Picture, Actor, Actress, Director etc., - that any of those films were nominated for.

The only big category that a comic book film has ever been nominated for was for Ledger's portrayal of The Joker, the Academy simply couldn't ignore a performance of that magnitude.


Dark Knight - Won Best Supporting Actor
Road To Perdition - Won Best Cinematogrpahy. Nominated best supporting actor/sound/score/production design
History of Violence - nominated best supporting actor, adapted screenplay
American Splendor - nominated best adapted screenplay
Oh, so only two :P

I do see what you're getting at though, I just wish the Academy would drop this highbrow mentality. Maybe it's just a matter of time.

[Lurker]

I think the only movie I have seen that's been nominated for anything was The Grand Budapest Hotel...

[Mattrick]

They've bern pretty good the last few years except for Best Picture winners. Everything else has been pretty spot on. Screenplay/directing/cinematography are the most important awards to me. Best Picture I don't even care about anymore. Been years since a movie won I felt really deserved it.

[Heather19]

Lol, you mean those consolation prize technical awards? Name big awards - Best Picture, Actor, Actress, Director etc., - that any of those films were nominated for.

The only big category that a comic book film has ever been nominated for was for Ledger's portrayal of The Joker, the Academy simply couldn't ignore a performance of that magnitude.


Dark Knight - Won Best Supporting Actor
Road To Perdition - Won Best Cinematogrpahy. Nominated best supporting actor/sound/score/production design
History of Violence - nominated best supporting actor, adapted screenplay
American Splendor - nominated best adapted screenplay
Oh, so only two :P

I do see what you're getting at though, I just wish the Academy would drop this highbrow mentality. Maybe it's just a matter of time.

That's what I was getting at with the horror films. It's definitely a rarity in any of the top categories. These types of films typically only get nominated in the technical categories. But that also goes along with the other point I brought up. They need to somehow change the academy to fit with the times. Is it really right that a majority of the voters are old white men? So many great films and performances will automatically be overlooked.

[Mattrick]

To be fair, not many horror films transcend the trappings of the genre. The Babadook definitely does. It's pretty rare for a horror film to excel not just at being scary but being a very good film on top of it. There's only a handful I can think of post 2000. I'm not sure how stacked the Best Actress running is, I haven't particularily heard or seen anything.

[Ricky]

Matt, if I watch Whiplash and end up hating it, I'm coming after you.


The Dark Knight was a martyr.

:lol:


Best Picture I don't even care about anymore. Been years since a movie won I felt really deserved it.

Ugh. Don't even get me started about Argo. :rolleyes:

Also, I really need to watch The Babadook this weekend.

[Still Servant]

I feel like over the recent years there's very little publicity for the films, or they're just in limited release so I never hear about them except for people mentioning them here. I just had to go look up what Whiplash, Foxcatcher, and Birdman were about. And honestly they don't sound all that appealing to me.

I know what you mean about Whiplash. I felt the same way. I'm glad I tried something different though because it's one of my favorite films of the year.

I wouldn't be surprised if you guys are underwhelmed because me, Matt and others here have been really touting that film lately, but I don't care. I loved it and want everybody to watch it.

[Shannon]

Rose and I watched the last scene in whiplash again tonight. When taken out of context, its still a good scene, but it loses all the buildup.

Tonight is Foxcatcher. Very excited.

[fernandito]

Has no one watched The Imitation Game yet?

[racerx45]

Has no one watched The Imitation Game yet?

I have and it's a really good movie.

[fernandito]

Is Cumberbatch a lock for a nomination?

[Shannon]

Watched Foxcatcher. Lots to say, lots of feelings, mostly negative/underwhelming, but I'm tired as fuck right now (sick with no sleep and a sick two year old) so I'll just say that I gave it a 3/5.

[Shannon]

Any Golden Globe predictions? As long as Birdman, Michael Keaton, Jake Gyllenhaal, and J.K. Simmons win, I could not care less about the rest of these shitty nominations.

[Still Servant]

Has no one watched The Imitation Game yet?

I have and it's a really good movie.

I second that. It's a remarkable story and a fantastic film.

[Mattrick]

ONLY A FEW MORE DAYS EEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!

[Still Servant]

Tomorrow morning at 8:30 Eastern time and 5:30 Pacific time Oscar nominations will be revealed. I will be posting the complete list here shortly after.

I'm not sure if it's being aired on TV or not, if so don't forget to set your DVR's. If you're home (or you're a rebel and want to watch while you're at work) you can use this link. Use this link to watch the nominations later in the day if you miss them too. I'm pretty sure they will have it up all day.

http://oscar.go.com/blogs/oscar-news/oscars-2015-nominees-announcement-and-live-stream

[Ricky]

They usually are broadcast live on TV (I think ABC, during Good Morning America or the Today show, but I'm not positive). I've watched them live the past few years, but they always post it online, too. So it's not a big deal if I miss it.

[Still Servant]

My Oscar Predictions

Best Picture


"Birdman"
"Boyhood"
"Foxcatcher"
"Gone Girl
“The Grand Budapest Hotel"
"The Imitation Game"
"Nightcrawler"
"Selma"
"The Theory of Everything"
"Whiplash"

Actor

Steve Carelll - "Foxcatcher"
Benedict Cumberbatch "The Imitation Game"
Jake Gyllenhaal "Nightcrawler"
Michael Keaton "Birdman"
Eddie Redmayne "The Theory of Everything"

Actress

Amy Adams "Big Eyes"
Felicity Jones "The Theory of Everything"
Julianne Moore "Still Alice"
Rosamund Pike "Gone Girl"
Reese Witherspoon "Wild"

Supporting Actress

Patricia Arquette "Boyhood"
Jessica Chastain "A Most Violent Year"
Keira Knightley "The Imitation Game"
Emma Stone "Birdman"
Meryl Streep "Into the Woods"

Supporting Actor


Ethan Hawke "Boyhood"
Edward Norton "Birdman"
Mark Ruffalo "Foxcatcher"
JK Simmons "Whiplash"
Christoph Waltz "Big Eyes"

Director

Wes Anderson "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
Damien Chazelle "Whiplash"
Ava DuVernay "Selma"
A.G. Iñárritu "Birdman"
Richard Linklater "Boyhood"

[Ricky]

I will be extremely surprised if Gone Girl and Nightcrawler are nominated for Best Picture.

[Still Servant]

Yeah, Gone Girl is my surprise pick for Best Picture. I wanted to put 10 in there, but I think there will probably be only 9. Nightcrawler has a pretty good chance. I'm seeing it pop up on a lot of prediction lists.

If Gone Girl doesn't get nominated, it proves how strong of a year for film it really was.

[Still Servant]

Here is the official full list of Oscar Nominations. I will also be posting this on the first page. There is no need to make your predictions now, we still have over a month until Oscar night.

Best Picture

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Selma”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Actor

Steve Carell - “Foxcatcher”
Bradley Cooper - “American Sniper”
Benedict Cumberbatch - “The Imitation Game”
Michael Keaton - “Birdman”
Eddie Redmayne - “The Theory of Everything”

Best Actress

Marion Cotillard - “Two Days, One Night”
Felicity Jones - “The Theory of Everything”
Julianne Moore - “Still Alice”
Rosamund Pike - “Gone Girl”
Reese Witherspoon - “Wild”

Best Supporting Actor

Robert Duvall - “The Judge”
Ethan Hawke - “Boyhood”
Edward Norton - “Birdman”
Mark Ruffalo - “Foxcatcher”
J.K. Simmons - “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress

Patricia Arquette - “Boyhood”
Laura Dern - “Wild”
Keira Knightley - “The Imitation Game”
Emma Stone - “Birdman”
Meryl Streep - “Into the Woods”

Best Director

Alejandro González Iñárritu - “Birdman”
Richard Linklater - “Boyhood”
Bennett Miller - “Foxcatcher”
Wes Anderson - “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Morten Tyldum - “The Imitation Game”

Best Animated Feature Film

“Big Hero 6″
“The Boxtrolls”
“How to Train Your Dragon 2″
“Song of the Sea”
“The Tale of the Princess Kaguya”

Best Adapted Screenplay

“American Sniper”
“The Imitation Game”
“Inherent Vice”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Screenplay

“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Nightcrawler”

Best Cinematography

“Birdman”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Ida”
“Mr. Turner”
“Unbroken”

Best Visual Effects

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier”
“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”
“Interstellar”
“X-Men: Days of Future Past”

Best Documentary Feature

“Citizenfour”
“Finding Vivian Maier”
“Last Days in Vietnam”
“The Salt of the Earth”
“Virunga”

Best Documentary Short Subject

“Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1″
“Joanna”
“Our Curse”
“The Reaper”
“White Earth”

Best Film Editing

“American Sniper”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Song

“Everything Is Awesome” from “The Lego Movie”
“Glory,” from “Selma”
“Grateful,” from “Beyond the Lights”
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” from “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me”
“Lost Stars,” from “Begin Again”

Best Production Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Into the Woods”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Live Action Short Film

“Aya”
“Boogaloo and Graham”
“Butter Lamp (La Lampe au Beurre de Yak)”
“Parvaneh”
“The Phone Call”

Best Animated Short Film

“The Bigger Picture”
“The Dam Keeper”
“Feast”
“Me and my Moulton”
“A Single Life”

Best Sound Editing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”

Best Sound Mixing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”
“Whiplash”

Best Costume Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Inherent Vice”
“Into the Woods”
“Maleficent”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Foreign Language Film

“Ida”
“Leviathan”
“Tangerines”
“Timbuktu”
“Wild Tales”

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”

Best Original Score

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Mr. Turner”
“The Theory of Everything”

[mae]

No picks for me yet, but just wanted to voice my approval of The Lego Movie "snub" for Best Animated Feature. It should not have been nominated. I recently caught it on TV and could not watch it for more than 20 minutes. I'm betting on Kaguya! :onfire:

[Heather19]

I'm surprised that both Amy Adams, and Christoph Waltz weren't nominated. I haven't seen Big Eyes though, so I can't comment if they should be, but they seem to be favorites with the Academy, so I was assuming they'd be at least nominated.

[Ricky]

I'm surprised there's only 8 nominations for Best Picture. First time it's been the few since...before 2011?

[webstar1000]

Really want to see Cooper snag the actor. LOVED HIM in Sniper....

[Mattrick]

Oh man, the outrage over some nominations. Evidently it's wrong DuVernay's Selma got a Best Picture nominations and not a best directing nomination because she's a black woman (and would have been the first)...as opposed to Eastwood/Chazzele/Marsh being in the SAME BOAT and Bennett Miller getting the most undeserving nomination for best director in sometime....so are people upset because she deserved it or there was no social progress? I mean, these are awards shows bestowing gold statues to millionaire celebrities....this is the last place social progress should take place!


I'm mixed about the nominations but might not feel that way after I've seen more of the nominations. Meryl Streep go away. I've heard you weren't even close to the best thing about Into The Woods. It was bad enough you won a couple years back when you barely deserved the nomination. Is The Academy afraid of hellfire and brimstone if she doesn't get a nomination?

Glad to see Alexandre Desplat get two nominations for original score. He's pretty great. His score to Philomena was second only to Arcade Fire's score for Her from last year.


Thinking I'm going to see American Sniper/Imitation Game tonight :D DOUBLE FEATURE!!!

[Still Servant]

No picks for me yet, but just wanted to voice my approval of The Lego Movie "snub" for Best Animated Feature. It should not have been nominated. I recently caught it on TV and could not watch it for more than 20 minutes. I'm betting on Kaguya! :onfire:

That still surprises me. The Lego Movie is the one film this year that everybody seems to like. Everybody I talk to (young and old) at least enjoyed the film to some degree. I'm shocked you couldn't even get past the first 20 minutes. I can see not liking it, but what was so bad that you couldn't even get past 20 minutes? There are so many worse films out there. Hell, I watched all of Taken 3.

[fernandito]

Interstellar deserves everything sound editing/mixing.

Oh and VFX.

[Still Servant]

Click here for my thoughts on Oscar Nominations (http://popculturedmoviemi.wix.com/popculturedmoviemike#!Oscar-Nominations-2015-/cdp6/5AD0FCFF-1984-448C-AFE4-4768924AD29D)

I'll copy and paste it for those that might have trouble viewing.

Oscar nominations were announced this morning and like most years, there were a few surprises, as well as a fair amount of Oscar snubs. This year, the Academy decided to announce every category live. In past years, only the main categories were revealed live on the air. I really liked hearing every category and I hope they continue this trend every year.

One thing the Academy has to make sure they change is to never let Cheryl Boone Isaacs, who represents the public relations branch of the Academy, ever announce the nominations again. She's horrible. She doesn't come off natural and I'm not really sure she can even read. She pretty much butchered any name more ethnic than Bradley Cooper. The only good thing to come out of it was another Oscar blunder, not as great as last year when John Travolta dismantled Idina Menzel's name, but still pretty funny. When it came time for Boone Isaacs to announce the nominees for Best Cinematography, she came to Dick Pope's name, the cinematographer for Mr. Turner, and accidentally called him Dick Poop. That was good for an early morning laugh from the sleepy Cali crowd. Anyway, here are some thoughts on the nominations.


One of the bigger head-scratchers of the morning was the fact that only 8 films were nominated for best picture. A few years ago, the Academy made the choice to allow up to 10 films to be nominated. The last few years, 9 films have been honored. In a strong year for film, it surprised me that 10 films weren't nominated. I was really happy to see Whiplash snag a nomination, it's one of my favorite films of the year. It was odd how Foxcatcher was left out in the cold, especially since the director of the film, Bennett Miller, was nominated for Best Director.



In the Best Actor category, everything was going according to plan until Bradley Cooper squeezed his way into the group. This is the third year in a row that Cooper has received a nomination. This meant that David Oyelowo, who garnered rave reviews for his portrayal of Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma, was snubbed. To me, the biggest snub was Jake Gyllenaal for Nightcrawler. He gave one of the best performances of the year. Hands down. He literally transformed himself and loses himself in that role. On the bright side, I was happy to see Steve Carell get nominated. He's known for his comedic roles and I thought he was great in Foxcatcher.



I'm getting really tired of seeing Meryl Streep get nominated for everything. She's not even close to being the best part of Into the Woods. That distinction goes to Chris Pine and Emily Blunt. The Academy has to give it a rest with her. She took a possible nomination away from Jessica Chastain for A Most Violent Year. The big surprise here was Laura Dern for Wild.



As I mentioned above, it's highly unusual to see a director get nominated, but not have his film receive a nomination for Best Picture. Many will be outraged that Bennett Miller stole a nomination from Ava DuVernay for Selma. Many thought the Academy was poised to nominate DuVernay, which would have made her the first African American female to be nominated for Best Director. I would have liked to see Damien Chazelle get nominated for Whiplash, but this was a fierce category.



I guess the Academy didn't think The Lego Movie was awesome because they neglected to nominate it for Best Animated Feature. This was one of the bigger shockers of the morning. Most people thought The Lego Movie was a lock for a win, yet it didn't even get nominated. I find it hard to believe The Boxtrolls is better than The Lego Movie. I've yet to hear anybody rave about Boxtrolls.



Nominating Rosamund Pike from Gone Girl for Best Actress was a no brainer, but the film was shut out everywhere else. Shockingly, Gillian Flynn didn't receive a nomination for Adapted Screenplay. Flynn did an excellent job of capturing the feel of her novel and bringing it to the big screen. A clear oversight by the Academy.



I'm probably the only person that cares about Best Documentary Feature, but I was really disappointed to see Life Itself get snubbed. Life Itself chronicles the life and death of legendary film critic Roger Ebert. Since the doc had such close ties with the film industry, I figured it was a lock for a nomination. Another documentary about film was Jodorowsky's Dune. A fantastic documentary about a passionate director's failure to bring Dune to the big screen. It turns out Hollywood has turned its back on Jodorowsky twice now, once in 1975 when they didn't buy into his vision for Dune and failed to finance his film and now snubbing a documentary on the whole process.



Thank god Whiplash was nominated for Best Editing or this whole piece would just be me ranting.


Overall, I think the Academy did a decent job. There were a few snubs that I disagree with, but that's how it is every year. In the end, the Oscars are what they are. We all know it's a popularity contest and it doesn't really matter in the end who wins and loses. I'm still waiting for the day that the Academy loosens up a little and nominates films like The Babadook, as well as performances that may have gone under the radar for one reason or another.

In the end, I will take solace in the fact that even if the Academy doesn't recognize these films and performances, it was still my privilege to get to experience them. I'll remember them long after we forget about what was nominated and what was snubbed.

I've seen most of the films nominated for Best Picture, but I still have a few more to round out the rest of the categories. It should be an interesting few weeks leading up to Oscar night.

[Shannon]

Hey Mattrick , I'll watch your double feature with you tonight. Thanks for making my mind up for me. :) See ya in a few hours in the Rate Movie thread.

[Ricky]

so are people upset because she deserved it or there was no social progress?

I think you hit the nail on the head. Regardless of a film's merit, people are always ready to turn it into a black/white thing.


Meryl Streep go away. I've heard you weren't even close to the best thing about Into The Woods. Is The Academy afraid of hellfire and brimstone if she doesn't get a nomination?

:lol:

I love Meryl Streep, but I was surprised by her nomination this morning. It seems like now she just gets nominated because she's Meryl Streep.


One thing the Academy has to make sure they change is to never let Cheryl Boone Isaacs, who represents the public relations branch of the Academy, ever announce the nominations again. She's horrible. She doesn't come off natural and I'm not really sure she can even read.

Ugh! I was thinking this when I was watching. I'm convinced she's a robot. I'm sure she's a nice person, but she's not the greatest or warmest presenter.

And it's funny, I didn't even notice the Dick Poop thing until I read it online a few hours later. I guess the volume on my TV wasn't loud enough. Needless to say, I laughed when I re-watched it. :lol:


The big surprise here was Laura Dern for Wild.

Very happy to see her nominated. She had a small role, but man, she was fantastic.


Nominating Rosamund Pike from Gone Girl for Best Actress was a no brainer, but the film was shut out everywhere else. Shockingly, Gillian Flynn didn't receive a nomination for Adapted Screenplay. Flynn did an excellent job of capturing the feel of her novel and bringing it to the big screen. A clear oversight by the Academy.

Agreed. I thought a nomination for Adapted Screenplay would be a sure thing. It was an excellent adaptation.

Also, I think I actually like having only 8 films being nominated. Makes it feel like the winner will be a bigger deal, rather than in past years when you can tell there was some "padding" with films that didn't really deserve to be there, especially compared to ones they were nominated with.

[Ricky]

Also, has anyone else noticed that Ellar Coltrane gives really long hugs? Between the Golden Gloves, Critics' Choice, etc., it's like he doesn't want to let go. I imagine Richard Linklater thinking, "Okay, you can let go now." :lol:

[Still Servant]

Also, has anyone else noticed that Ellar Coltrane gives really long hugs? Between the Golden Gloves, Critics' Choice, etc., it's like he doesn't want to let go. I imagine Richard Linklater thinking, "Okay, you can let go now." :lol:

He better hold on to anything that has to do with Boyhood as long as he can because he will never come close to that film for the rest of his life. I honestly don't think he has a career as an actor. That's just me though.

[Mattrick]

One of the bigger head-scratchers of the morning was the fact that only 8 films were nominated for best picture. A few years ago, the Academy made the choice to allow up to 10 films to be nominated. The last few years, 9 films have been honored. In a strong year for film, it surprised me that 10 films weren't nominated. I was really happy to see Whiplash snag a nomination, it's one of my favorite films of the year. It was odd how Foxcatcher was left out in the cold, especially since the director of the film, Bennett Miller, was nominated for Best Director.

I am curious as to why that is too. I wonder if it has to do with the distance between votes. If the 8th film on the list received say 60 votes (no idea how many votes there actually are) and the 9th film got 25 votes, maybe they decide to trim it.


In the Best Actor category, everything was going according to plan until Bradley Cooper squeezed his way into the group. This is the third year in a row that Cooper has received a nomination. This meant that David Oyelowo, who garnered rave reviews for his portrayal of Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma, was snubbed. To me, the biggest snub was Jake Gyllenaal for Nightcrawler. He gave one of the best performances of the year. Hands down. He literally transformed himself and loses himself in that role. On the bright side, I was happy to see Steve Carell get nominated. He's known for his comedic roles and I thought he was great in Foxcatcher.

It was a deep year for the category and yet no one really stood out from the pack. There's probably a half dozen actors who could have been just as at home in the category. I kind of wish Ralph Fiennes had of gotten a nomination out of everyone that didn't.


As I mentioned above, it's highly unusual to see a director get nominated, but not have his film receive a nomination for Best Picture. Many will be outraged that Bennett Miller stole a nomination from Ava DuVernay for Selma. Many thought the Academy was poised to nominate DuVernay, which would have made her the first African American female to be nominated for Best Director. I would have liked to see Damien Chazelle get nominated for Whiplash, but this was a fierce category.

Chazelle, Marsh, Eastwood, PT Anderson, David Fincher, Gilroy can join that list too. All deserving I am sure. It's the politcal aspect of her being a black woman. Some people are more interested in 'first time evers' because it makes them feel like they are part of some massive milestone moment, when it's anything but. It's a shame really, that we as a society haven't even come close to getting over such superficialities even though we like to tell ourselves we have. I don't see how being a black woman is ANY kind of qualification for a nomination, at all. I'm sure Selma is a solid movie and she's more than deserving but she can join the list of others that are also more than deserving.



I guess the Academy didn't think The Lego Movie was awesome because they neglected to nominate it for Best Animated Feature. This was one of the bigger shockers of the morning. Most people thought The Lego Movie was a lock for a win, yet it didn't even get nominated. I find it hard to believe The Boxtrolls is better than The Lego Movie. I've yet to hear anybody rave about Boxtrolls.


Haven't seen this yet so I can't have much of an opinion but I did find it strange. It made quite a few top ten lists.



Nominating Rosamund Pike from Gone Girl for Best Actress was a no brainer, but the film was shut out everywhere else. Shockingly, Gillian Flynn didn't receive a nomination for Adapted Screenplay. Flynn did an excellent job of capturing the feel of her novel and bringing it to the big screen. A clear oversight by the Academy.


Another casuality of depth of field. I do need to take a closer look at the writing awards (and finally put on Gone Girl) to really have much say.



Thank god Whiplash was nominated for Best Editing or this whole piece would just be me ranting.


In 100% agreement. I think the stellar editing and electric acting actually killed Chazelle's chances at a nomination at directing. It's my pick to win. And our friend Roger Deakins got yet another nomination and when I saw the film I already know that again he won't win :/ Poor guy, they need to give me a damn statue or stop torturing him year in and year out.





A side note about nominations: I really hate the term 'snub'. When I think snub I think Kramer "I snubbed her". It's a word with such negative connotations. I know I snubbed someone who was once very important to me and I remember that I'd hurt them. Whenever I see 'snub' in the context of nominations I automatically think of the Academy literally making a conscious choice to ignore and disregard and wound. I think in most cases its just a matter of depth of field. That's not to say politics or whatever can't be a part of it. I know most people don't intend for the word in a malicious sense but that's kind of what the word means. Snub (verb): to treat with disdain or contempt, especially by ignoring. I wish we had a better word to use. It's just such a harsh word for decisions we can never have any way of knowing how or why they were made.

[Tommy]

Also, has anyone else noticed that Ellar Coltrane gives really long hugs? Between the Golden Gloves, Critics' Choice, etc., it's like he doesn't want to let go. I imagine Richard Linklater thinking, "Okay, you can let go now." :lol:

He better hold on to anything that has to do with Boyhood as long as he can because he will never come close to that film for the rest of his life. I honestly don't think he has a career as an actor. That's just me though.

Agreed, I liked Boyhood but it is by far the most overrated movie I've seen in a very long time. If it weren't for the gimmick, and it is a gimmick, of using the same actors over a period of 12 years, no one would have noticed this film. I like Linklater's films and went to this one wholly expecting to be blown away but instead I found myself bored and unimpressed. The individual scenes are nice enough but when added together, the sum is not greater than the parts. If different actors had been used for the different periods would it even had been a good movie? It was overly long with too many songs and some of the scenes were out of focus, at least in the print I saw at the theater. Re-watching it would not be that much fun for me, I would much prefer to watch Dazed and Confused or Waking Life or any of Linklater's other films again before this one. All that being said, Patricia Arquette was the best part of the movie and I do think she deserves a nomination. Maybe because this film in no way represented my childhood is making me biased against it and I know many are quite fond of it but I just had to get that off my chest.

[mae]

No picks for me yet, but just wanted to voice my approval of The Lego Movie "snub" for Best Animated Feature. It should not have been nominated. I recently caught it on TV and could not watch it for more than 20 minutes. I'm betting on Kaguya! :onfire:

That still surprises me. The Lego Movie is the one film this year that everybody seems to like. Everybody I talk to (young and old) at least enjoyed the film to some degree. I'm shocked you couldn't even get past the first 20 minutes. I can see not liking it, but what was so bad that you couldn't even get past 20 minutes? There are so many worse films out there. Hell, I watched all of Taken 3.

I don't know what it was specifically but I felt it was just bland. Okay it's made out of Legos, I get it. It was just too meta, and not in a good way. And since animators vote for the nominees in this category, it makes sense.

As for the whole diversity argument, most seem to forget first-ever nominations for Estonia and Mauritania (their first submission).

[fernandito]

I'm watching American Sniper tomorrow or Sunday morning, curious to see Cooper's performance.

Also, A Most Violent Year looks amazing.

[Still Servant]

A side note about nominations: I really hate the term 'snub'. When I think snub I think Kramer "I snubbed her". It's a word with such negative connotations. I know I snubbed someone who was once very important to me and I remember that I'd hurt them. Whenever I see 'snub' in the context of nominations I automatically think of the Academy literally making a conscious choice to ignore and disregard and wound. I think in most cases its just a matter of depth of field. That's not to say politics or whatever can't be a part of it. I know most people don't intend for the word in a malicious sense but that's kind of what the word means. Snub (verb): to treat with disdain or contempt, especially by ignoring. I wish we had a better word to use. It's just such a harsh word for decisions we can never have any way of knowing how or why they were made.

I agree with the word "snub." I just use it because everybody else does, but it doesn't really apply withe the Oscars. The word "snub" is a word I associate with a single person, not a group. Like you said, it's more about a numbers game than it is about being snubbed.

The other thing we have to realize is how the Academy goes about voting. I'd really love to know. Honestly, I think we are under the wrong impression about a lot of the voters. I think most of us probably think that every voter is passionate about film and talks about them with other voters. I like to think that they are compiling lists like we do here throughout the year. The fact of the matter is that many of them are just fulfilling their obligation as part of the Academy and not because they can't wait to watch all the best films of the year.

I read an article that said many voters don't even end up watching most of their screeners. This leads me to A Most Violent Year. I'm with Feev, I think the films looks really good, but it got such a late push, I don't think many voters even got around to watching it.

I wish we could learn more about the voting process ,as well as what goes into nominating each film. I'd love to hear from more voters on this subject.

[Ricky]

Maybe Heather can fill us in on the voting process? You know, considering her "insider information" for the winners every year. :lol:

[Still Servant]

Maybe Heather can fill us in on the voting process? You know, considering her "insider information" for the winners every year. :lol:

:lol:HAAAAAA!!!:lol:

That's great!!

[Mattrick]

I try to watch it alll...why are people on the Academy if they don't watch it all?

[Still Servant]

I try to watch it alll...why are people on the Academy if they don't watch it all?

That's a good question, but a lot of them are just really busy I guess.

[Heather19]

Maybe Heather can fill us in on the voting process? You know, considering her "insider information" for the winners every year. :lol:

:lol:

Actually I'm realy curious as well. I have a feeling you're right in that they don't watch everything. Are the ones that nominate the films, the ones that also vote for the winners?

[fernandito]

American Sniper made 90$ MILLION at the box office!?!?!?

[Still Servant]

Maybe Heather can fill us in on the voting process? You know, considering her "insider information" for the winners every year. :lol:

:lol:

Actually I'm realy curious as well. I have a feeling you're right in that they don't watch everything. Are the ones that nominate the films, the ones that also vote for the winners?

Yes, I think they are, but I'm not positive.

Feev, I know! Crazy, right! I think this is the result of a perfect storm of things. First, the film just got a bunch of nominations and is riding high on buzz, people like Clint Eastwood, Bradley Cooper has become a bona-fide superstar and, the most important, America loves patriotic movies.

Here's a really interesting article on Chris Kyle for those that might be interested.

http://mpmacting.com/blog/2014/7/19/truth-justice-and-the-curious-case-of-chris-kyle

[pathoftheturtle]

https://www.latimes.com/unmasking-oscar-academy-project/2-19-2012 (https://web.archive.org/web/20140307133844/http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/movies/academy/la-et-unmasking-oscar-academy-project-html,0,7473284.htmlstory)

[Still Servant]

https://www.latimes.com/unmasking-oscar-academy-project/2-19-2012 (https://web.archive.org/web/20140307133844/http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/movies/academy/la-et-unmasking-oscar-academy-project-html,0,7473284.htmlstory)

Very interesting read.

[fernandito]

omg, the thought of two Mexican directors winning Best Director awards back to back makes me happy :)

Birdman flies ahead in Oscars race (http://time.com/3682141/birdman-oscars-2015-screen-actors-guild-awards-sag/)

[Still Servant]

Yeah, I think Birdman just made Oscar night a little more interesting. It seems like everything was pointing to Boyhood, but now I think it's even.

[Mattrick]

Seen:

Boyhood
American Sniper
Birdman
The Imitation Game
Grand Budapest Hotel
Whiplash
Foxcatcher
Interstellar
Guardians of the Galaxy
Nightcrawler


Need to see:

Selma
Theory of Everything
Two Days, One Night
Gone Girl
Wild
Still Alice
Ida
Mr. Turner
Inherent Vice

[Merlin1958]

Surprise post whore!!!


Fury, was pretty good though not nominated!!!

[fernandito]

Gone Girl and Inherent Vice are dope.

I want to see Wild.

Selma is based on a true story, are you sure you're up for it, Matt :P

[Mattrick]

This is the year of the true story lol. Haven't had much chance to avoid it. Imitation Game, Foxcatcher, Selma, American Sniper, The Theory of Everything, Wild, Unbroken and there's probably one or two I'm forgetting.

[Shannon]

"Imitation Game, Foxcatcher, Selma, American Sniper, The Theory of Everything, Wild, Unbroken ..."

... Dumb and Dumber To

[Ricky]

Just got my ticket to AMC's Best Picture Showcase. Haven't been since 2012!

[Still Servant]

Just got my ticket to AMC's Best Picture Showcase. Haven't been since 2012!

That should be fun. It should be worth it to you too this year because you were saying you haven't seen a lot of the films nominated.

[Ricky]

Definitely. The line up for 2/14 is Grand Budapest Hotel, Whiplash, Birdman, and Selma. The last three are the ones I want to see the most so it was a no-brainer to go on that day . Plus, I don't think I'd be able to see Whiplash or Birdman otherwise.

[fernandito]

Whiplash IS.FUCKING.PHENOMENAL. It's my pick for BP. Idc what anyone else thinks, Simmons deserves Best Supporting.

Birdman is amazing as well, but as I mentioned on my fb post, it might be too meta / satirical for the casuals. Michael Keaton should win Best Actor, what a performance. Iñarritu makes a strong case for Best Director.

I now have American Sniper, Grand Budapest, Imitation Game, Whiplash, and Birdman under my belt from the nominees I was dying to watch; After I watch Boyhood this week, the only other film I'll need is Fox Catcher.

[mae]

I hope you'll feel Boyhood is as good as Whiplash. Obviously, very different films, but I'm pulling for Boyhood for Best Picture.

I don't remember if we did this in the past, but after everyone gets in their picks, it would be fun to tabulate our consensus picks (just list who picked what and which pick was the most popular). Could be interesting.

[Still Servant]

After I watch Boyhood this week, the only other film I'll need is Fox Catcher.

Foxcatcher isn't nominated for Best Picture, but you should still see it.

[fernandito]

I hope you'll feel Boyhood is as good as Whiplash. Obviously, very different films...


I have a strong feeling that I will. I'm in the mood for something a little more introspective.



After I watch Boyhood this week, the only other film I'll need is Fox Catcher.

Foxcatcher isn't nominated for Best Picture, but you should still see it.

Ahhh FML, that's what I get for not paying closer attention. Still want to see it though.

[Ricky]

it would be fun to tabulate our consensus picks (just list who picked what and which pick was the most popular). Could be interesting.

I like this idea, specifically for Best Picture. We can have "our" Oscar winners.

[Mattrick]

If we're going to do 'our' Oscars, we can make our picks as to who will win, and then what we personally pick to win in brackets.

[Still Servant]

If we're going to do 'our' Oscars, we can make our picks as to who will win, and then what we personally pick to win in brackets.

Yeah because what I end up picking to win isn't what I would pick as my favorite. I will probably pick Boyhood to win Best Picture, but my favorite of the films nominated is Whiplash.

When I do this with my family we usually do two picks, one that we think should win (our favorite) and the other being what we think will win.

I can't remember, but I usually list my picks a few days in advance of the Oscars. I'll probably do that again this year. If we get enough people doing it, I will tally things up. The tricky part will be making sure we don't confuse these with our official picks.

[Heather19]

I'm going to try to go see the nominated animated shorts this weekend :) Can't believe the awards are so soon, isn't it usually in March?

[Still Servant]

I'm going to try to go see the nominated animated shorts this weekend :) Can't believe the awards are so soon, isn't it usually in March?

Yes, it's a little earlier. Years ago it used to be late March. Last year was March 1st or 2nd I think.

Didn't you see the Animated shorts last year and it was one of the only categories you got wrong? :lol:

[Mattrick]

They're usually around the end of the february for while to my memory.

I've got to catch up watching some more noms in the next ten days. Will finally have the time as of this weekend to delve into one or two a day.

[Heather19]

I'm going to try to go see the nominated animated shorts this weekend :) Can't believe the awards are so soon, isn't it usually in March?

Yes, it's a little earlier. Years ago it used to be late March. Last year was March 1st or 2nd I think.

Didn't you see the Animated shorts last year and it was one of the only categories you got wrong? :lol:

That's what I thought, I thought it was still a few weeks away. I guess I should start thinking about my picks :lol:

And yes it was the only one I got wrong. Kept me from getting a perfect score. Go figure :lol:

[Mattrick]

I'm really upset Mr. Turner is 100% unavailable to me...in theatres, torrents and I can't even find the score!

[Ricky]

Just got back from the Best Picture Showcase a little while ago. So far, Whiplash is my favorite of the ones I've seen. I really liked that it felt very intimate, letting us get to know the characters, and for a movie about drumming it was pretty exciting (and wonderfully paced). Miles Teller and JK Simmons were also really good. Simmons has got to win Best Supporting. I loved how unpredictable Fletcher was.

I think my only "complaint" would be that it felt like it was building to something bigger (I literally thought Andrew was going to have a heart attack or something during the last scene) and never got there. I like that Andrew ended up pushing himself to Fletcher's level and became the "great" player that Fletcher had always failed to cultivate, but think it would've been even better if the stakes were a little higher.


Wasn't a big fan of Grand Budapest Hotel (but can appreciate Wes Anderson's style); Birdman was okay. Great performance by Keaton but I don't think I can rave about it as a whole like some of the critics out there; and I really liked Selma but thought it lacked focus a little by trying to focus on King's life, the people of the movement, and the politics behind it. There's probably at least three different movies in there and while each of them are good, they don't really form a focused whole. After seeing it, I can see why DuVernay wasn't nominated for Best Director, but man, Oyelowo was cheated.

So far I've seen Boyhood, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Whiplash, Birdman, and Selma out of the BP nominees. The Theory of Everything comes out on DVD next week, but it doesn't look like it's coming to Netflix or Redbox for a few weeks so I might not get to see it before the Oscars. The Imitation Game and American Sniper are playing by me, so I think I'll at least see one of them before the 22nd. Anyone have a recommendation for either?

I wouldn't categorize any of the movies as "bad," but do feel like it's one of the weaker years for BP nominees. Unlike past years, there hasn't been any "wow" film for me.

[Still Servant]

I enjoyed The Imitation Game more than American Sniper. They're both solid though.

[Mattrick]

Yeah Imitation Game is excellent. Number 4 on my list.

[mae]

Best Picture

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Selma”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Actor

Steve Carell - “Foxcatcher”
Bradley Cooper - “American Sniper”
Benedict Cumberbatch - “The Imitation Game”
Michael Keaton - “Birdman”
Eddie Redmayne - “The Theory of Everything”

Best Actress

Marion Cotillard - “Two Days, One Night”
Felicity Jones - “The Theory of Everything”
Julianne Moore - “Still Alice”
Rosamund Pike - “Gone Girl”
Reese Witherspoon - “Wild”

Best Supporting Actor

Robert Duvall - “The Judge”
Ethan Hawke - “Boyhood”
Edward Norton - “Birdman”
Mark Ruffalo - “Foxcatcher”
J.K. Simmons - “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress

Patricia Arquette - “Boyhood”
Laura Dern - “Wild”
Keira Knightley - “The Imitation Game”
Emma Stone - “Birdman”
Meryl Streep - “Into the Woods”

Best Director

Alejandro González Iñárritu - “Birdman”
Richard Linklater - “Boyhood”
Bennett Miller - “Foxcatcher”
Wes Anderson - “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Morten Tyldum - “The Imitation Game”

Best Animated Feature Film

“Big Hero 6″
“The Boxtrolls”
“How to Train Your Dragon 2″
“Song of the Sea”
“The Tale of the Princess Kaguya”

Best Adapted Screenplay

“American Sniper”
“The Imitation Game”
“Inherent Vice”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Screenplay

“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Nightcrawler”

Best Cinematography

“Birdman”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Ida”
“Mr. Turner”
“Unbroken”

Best Visual Effects

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier”
“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”
“Interstellar”
“X-Men: Days of Future Past”

Best Documentary Feature

“Citizenfour”
“Finding Vivian Maier”
“Last Days in Vietnam”
“The Salt of the Earth”
“Virunga”

Best Documentary Short Subject

“Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1″
“Joanna”
“Our Curse”
“The Reaper”
“White Earth”

Best Film Editing

“American Sniper”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Song

“Everything Is Awesome” from “The Lego Movie”
“Glory,” from “Selma”
“Grateful,” from “Beyond the Lights”
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” from “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me”
“Lost Stars,” from “Begin Again”

Best Production Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Into the Woods”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Live Action Short Film

“Aya”
“Boogaloo and Graham”
“Butter Lamp (La Lampe au Beurre de Yak)”
“Parvaneh”
“The Phone Call”

Best Animated Short Film

“The Bigger Picture”
“The Dam Keeper”
“Feast”
“Me and my Moulton”
“A Single Life”

Best Sound Editing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”

Best Sound Mixing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”
“Whiplash”

Best Costume Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Inherent Vice”
“Into the Woods”
“Maleficent”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Foreign Language Film

“Ida”
“Leviathan”
“Tangerines”
“Timbuktu”
“Wild Tales”

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”

Best Original Score

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Mr. Turner”
“The Theory of Everything”



Tiebreaker: The Grand Budapest Hotel with 5.

[fernandito]

Rick-

I completely echo your sentiment about there not being enough 'wow' factor in this year's BP nominees (with the exception of Whiplash which was almost perfect). Definitely one of the weaker Oscar years.

American Sniper and Imitation Game are both solid. I was expecting Imitation Game to be a lot more than it was though. Not a bad film by any means, but nothing ground breaking either.

[Ricky]

In terms of excitement, which would you recommend? I'm going to try and see one this weekend and am in the mood for something a little more fast paced/tense rather than a quiet, talky film (which is kind of what I feel like Imitation Game is).

[fernandito]

In that case American Sniper, definitely. Some of those shootout scenes are very frantic and intense. Imitation Game is very talky.

[Ricky]

Imitation Game is very talky.

That's kind of the vibe I got from the trailers and clips. Thanks!

[Still Servant]

Lookin' good so far, Pablo.

I will repost the rules and the list of nominations so people don't have to go back to the first page.

I thought it was a strong year for film, including many of the films nominated for Best Picture. That being said, some of the best films of the year didn't even get nominated.

[Still Servant]

Rules for the Oscar contest.

IMPORTANT: Don't forget the tie breaker. It's simple: Basically, everybody will submit their choices like usual, except they will also add which film they think will win the most Oscars and give a number. In case of a tie, who ever has the closest number without going over is the winner.

Predictions have to be in by showtime, so there is no rush to post them. We still have a week until Oscar night. I myself will be waiting for the last possible moment to post my predictions. I still have films to watch, buzz to follow and articles to read.

Remember, these are just educated guesses. None of us have seen every film nominated and I doubt if anybody has seen any of the documentary short subject nominees. Just make an educated guess. Or an uneducated guess.

Best Picture

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Selma”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Actor

Steve Carell - “Foxcatcher”
Bradley Cooper - “American Sniper”
Benedict Cumberbatch - “The Imitation Game”
Michael Keaton - “Birdman”
Eddie Redmayne - “The Theory of Everything”

Best Actress

Marion Cotillard - “Two Days, One Night”
Felicity Jones - “The Theory of Everything”
Julianne Moore - “Still Alice”
Rosamund Pike - “Gone Girl”
Reese Witherspoon - “Wild”

Best Supporting Actor

Robert Duvall - “The Judge”
Ethan Hawke - “Boyhood”
Edward Norton - “Birdman”
Mark Ruffalo - “Foxcatcher”
J.K. Simmons - “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress

Patricia Arquette - “Boyhood”
Laura Dern - “Wild”
Keira Knightley - “The Imitation Game”
Emma Stone - “Birdman”
Meryl Streep - “Into the Woods”

Best Director

Alejandro González Iñárritu - “Birdman”
Richard Linklater - “Boyhood”
Bennett Miller - “Foxcatcher”
Wes Anderson - “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Morten Tyldum - “The Imitation Game”

Best Animated Feature Film

“Big Hero 6″
“The Boxtrolls”
“How to Train Your Dragon 2″
“Song of the Sea”
“The Tale of the Princess Kaguya”

Best Adapted Screenplay

“American Sniper”
“The Imitation Game”
“Inherent Vice”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Screenplay

“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Nightcrawler”

Best Cinematography

“Birdman”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Ida”
“Mr. Turner”
“Unbroken”

Best Visual Effects

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier”
“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”
“Interstellar”
“X-Men: Days of Future Past”

Best Documentary Feature

“Citizenfour”
“Finding Vivian Maier”
“Last Days in Vietnam”
“The Salt of the Earth”
“Virunga”

Best Documentary Short Subject

“Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1″
“Joanna”
“Our Curse”
“The Reaper”
“White Earth”

Best Film Editing

“American Sniper”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Song

“Everything Is Awesome” from “The Lego Movie”
“Glory,” from “Selma”
“Grateful,” from “Beyond the Lights”
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” from “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me”
“Lost Stars,” from “Begin Again”

Best Production Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Into the Woods”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Live Action Short Film

“Aya”
“Boogaloo and Graham”
“Butter Lamp (La Lampe au Beurre de Yak)”
“Parvaneh”
“The Phone Call”

Best Animated Short Film

“The Bigger Picture”
“The Dam Keeper”
“Feast”
“Me and my Moulton”
“A Single Life”

Best Sound Editing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”

Best Sound Mixing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”
“Whiplash”

Best Costume Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Inherent Vice”
“Into the Woods”
“Maleficent”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Foreign Language Film

“Ida”
“Leviathan”
“Tangerines”
“Timbuktu”
“Wild Tales”

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”

Best Original Score

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Mr. Turner”
“The Theory of Everything”

[Mattrick]

I'm planning on posting my predictions Saturday night after I marathon the last films I still need to see. Was going to see Inherent Vice at the cinemas on Thurs/Fri but it appears to no longer be playing.

I'm still pissed I have ZERO access to Mr. Turner. I want to see this film so damn bad but it didn't play anywhere, there's no screeners...nothing. I'm still going to pick it for cinematography. The trailer alone told me how beautiful it is. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GKlo2xWvuI

[Still Servant]

My Favorite Performances by a Lead Actor - 2014 (http://popculturedmoviemi.wix.com/popculturedmoviemike#!about1/cao7)

[Mattrick]

Michael, have you ever watched Dan In Real Life with Carrell? It's a very underrated movie in which he gives a pretty understated performance like in Foxcatcher. It's got a solid supporting cast too: Juliette Binoche, Alison Pill, Dianne Wiest, John Mahoney, Amy Ryan.

[Heather19]

So I went to see the animated shorts this past weekend. Honestly I was a bit let down. Some were ok, but there's no way these can be the best animated shorts put out this year. They all felt a bit flat to me. Here's a brief summary of them.


Me and my Moulton - Cute little film about a group of sisters who want a bike. Very minimal animation wise but it fit the story.

Feast - Funny little short by Disney about a dog and his owner and the meals they share. While it's a cute little cartoon, in my opinion there is no way this is Oscar worthy.

The Bigger Picture - This one was a bit weird. It was about brothers taking care of their ailing mom. Animation for this one was a bit different, it was like a painting, kind of hard to describe.

A Single Life - A very short little film about a girl who receives a record and finds out that as she fast forwards and rewinds it, it does the same for her life. Animation here was of course 3D, which for the most part I'm just not a fan of. And considering the length, I wish that they had done it in classical animation.

The Dam Keeper - Easily my favorite out of the bunch. Good little story about a young pig who is a dam keeper, and because of this he's always getting picked on in school by everyone. Until this new little fox moves into town and befriends him.

So my question is how do these shorts actually get nominated. Does the studio or producer submit them? And they only pick out of shorts submitted? I'm guessing Feast is only nominated because it's a Disney cartoon. But most of the others were just kinda blah as well, that I bet if you watched everything made, there's much better ones?


I'm still pissed I have ZERO access to Mr. Turner. I want to see this film so damn bad but it didn't play anywhere, there's no screeners...nothing. I'm still going to pick it for cinematography. The trailer alone told me how beautiful it is. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GKlo2xWvuI

It's playing at the theater by me where I saw the animated shorts. Honestly I haven't heard anything about this film until you mentioned it. I believe they've also played most of the other nominated films. They're playing the live action shorts and the documentary shorts as well. And coming soon they'll be playing Song of the Sea which looks pretty good. I'm going to try to go see that one.

[Ricky]

The shorts are never playing by me so I never get to see them unless one of them happens to be uploaded to YouTube or something. Based on your feedback it seems like I didn't miss anything this year, though.

[Still Servant]

Michael, have you ever watched Dan In Real Life with Carrell? It's a very underrated movie in which he gives a pretty understated performance like in Foxcatcher. It's got a solid supporting cast too: Juliette Binoche, Alison Pill, Dianne Wiest, John Mahoney, Amy Ryan.

Yes, I've seen Dan in Real Life. Good film. Certainly one of Carell's more understated performances. It's still not as much of a stretch as Foxcatcher. He was also really good in a more serious role in The Way Way Back. He plays a real jerk.

Dan in Real Life has a nice cast, but you forgot to mention the great Dane Cook. LOL.

[Mattrick]

Dan in Real Life has a nice cast, but you forgot to mention the great Dane Cook. LOL.

That omission was no accident haha. To quote Stewie Griffin: I don't know if he's funny, but he sure moves around a lot.

[Still Servant]

My Favorite Performances by a Lead Actress - 2014 (http://popculturedmoviemi.wix.com/popculturedmoviemike#!my-favorite-performances-by-an-actress/c1u9a)

[Stockerlone]

Best Picture

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Selma”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Actor

Steve Carell - “Foxcatcher”
Bradley Cooper - “American Sniper”
Benedict Cumberbatch - “The Imitation Game”
Michael Keaton - “Birdman”
Eddie Redmayne - “The Theory of Everything”

Best Actress

Marion Cotillard - “Two Days, One Night”
Felicity Jones - “The Theory of Everything”
Julianne Moore - “Still Alice”
Rosamund Pike - “Gone Girl”
Reese Witherspoon - “Wild”

Best Supporting Actor

Robert Duvall - “The Judge”
Ethan Hawke - “Boyhood”
Edward Norton - “Birdman”
Mark Ruffalo - “Foxcatcher”
J.K. Simmons - “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress

Patricia Arquette - “Boyhood”
Laura Dern - “Wild”
Keira Knightley - “The Imitation Game”
Emma Stone - “Birdman”
Meryl Streep - “Into the Woods”

Best Director

Alejandro González Iñárritu - “Birdman”
Richard Linklater - “Boyhood”
Bennett Miller - “Foxcatcher”
Wes Anderson - “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Morten Tyldum - “The Imitation Game”

Best Animated Feature Film

“Big Hero 6″
“The Boxtrolls”
“How to Train Your Dragon 2″
“Song of the Sea”
“The Tale of the Princess Kaguya”

Best Adapted Screenplay

“American Sniper”
“The Imitation Game”
“Inherent Vice”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Screenplay

“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Nightcrawler”

Best Cinematography

“Birdman”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Ida”
“Mr. Turner”
“Unbroken”

Best Visual Effects

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier”
“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”
“Interstellar”
“X-Men: Days of Future Past”

Best Documentary Feature

“Citizenfour”
“Finding Vivian Maier”
“Last Days in Vietnam”
“The Salt of the Earth”
“Virunga”

Best Documentary Short Subject

“Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1″
“Joanna”
“Our Curse”
“The Reaper”
“White Earth”

Best Film Editing

“American Sniper”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Song

“Everything Is Awesome” from “The Lego Movie”
“Glory,” from “Selma”
“Grateful,” from “Beyond the Lights”
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” from “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me”
“Lost Stars,” from “Begin Again”

Best Production Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Into the Woods”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Live Action Short Film

“Aya”
“Boogaloo and Graham”
“Butter Lamp (La Lampe au Beurre de Yak)”
“Parvaneh”
“The Phone Call”

Best Animated Short Film

“The Bigger Picture”
“The Dam Keeper”
“Feast”
“Me and my Moulton”
“A Single Life”

Best Sound Editing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”

Best Sound Mixing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”
“Whiplash”

Best Costume Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Inherent Vice”
“Into the Woods”
“Maleficent”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Foreign Language Film

“Ida”
“Leviathan”
“Tangerines”
“Timbuktu”
“Wild Tales”

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”

Best Original Score

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Mr. Turner”
“The Theory of Everything”


Tiebreaker: 5 The Grand Budapest Hotel

[Lurker]

Best Picture
“Boyhood”

Best Actor
Michael Keaton - “Birdman”

Best Actress
Julianne Moore - “Still Alice”

Best Supporting Actor
J.K. Simmons - “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress
Patricia Arquette - “Boyhood”

Best Director
Alejandro González Iñárritu - “Birdman”

Best Animated Feature Film
“Big Hero 6"

Best Adapted Screenplay
“The Imitation Game”

Best Original Screenplay
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Cinematography
“Birdman”

Best Visual Effects
“Interstellar”

Best Documentary Feature
“Citizenfour”

Best Documentary Short Subject
“Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1"

Best Film Editing
“Boyhood”

Best Original Song
“Glory,” from “Selma”

Best Production Design
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Live Action Short Film
“The Phone Call”

Best Animated Short Film
“Feast”

Best Sound Editing
“American Sniper”

Best Sound Mixing
“American Sniper”

Best Costume Design
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Foreign Language Film
“Ida”

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Original Score
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Tiebreaker - Grand Budapest Hotel 5

[George Monkey]

Oscar Picks From The Monkey:

My Picks:

1) Production Design - Grand Budapest Hotel
2) Actress - Julianne Moore
3) Supporting Actress - Patricia Arquette
4) Supporting Actor - JK Simmons
5) Adapted Screenplay - The Imitation Game
6) Cinematography - Birdman
7) Song - "Glory" From Selma.
8) Original Score - Theory of Everything
9) Documentary Feature - Citizenfour
10) Animated Feature - How To Train Your Dragon 2
11) Best Actor - Eddie Redmayne
12) Costume Design - Grand Budapest Hotel
13) Visual Effects - Interstellar
14) Film Editing - Boyhood
15) Makeup - Grand Budapest Hotel
16) Foreign Film - Ida
17) Documentary Short - Crisis Hotline : Veterans Press 1
18) Animated Short - Feast
19) Sound Mixing - American Sniper
20) Sound Editing - American Sniper
21) Original Screenplay - Grand Budapest Hotel
22) Live Action Short - The Phone Call
23) Best Picture - Birdman
24) Best Director - Alejandro Innaritu

Tiebreaker : The Grand Budapest Hotel, 4

[George Monkey]

Oscar Picks From The Monkey:

My Picks:

1) Production Design - Grand Budapest Hotel
2) Actress - Julianne Moore
3) Supporting Actress - Patricia Arquette
4) Supporting Actor - JK Simmons
5) Adapted Screenplay - The Imitation Game
6) Cinematography - Birdman
7) Song - "Glory" From Selma.
8) Original Score - Theory of Everything
9) Documentary Feature - Citizenfour
10) Animated Feature - How To Train Your Dragon 2
11) Best Actor - Eddie Redmayne
12) Costume Design - Grand Budapest Hotel
13) Visual Effects - Interstellar
14) Film Editing - Boyhood
15) Makeup - Grand Budapest Hotel
16) Foreign Film - Ida
17) Documentary Short - Crisis Hotline : Veterans Press 1
18) Animated Short - Feast
19) Sound Mixing - American Sniper
20) Sound Editing - American Sniper
21) Original Screenplay - Grand Budapest Hotel
22) Live Action Short - The Phone Call
23) Best Picture - Birdman
24) Best Director - Alejandro Innaritu

Tiebreaker : The Grand Budapest Hotel, 4

[Still Servant]

Keeps those picks coming!

My Favorite Performances by a Supporting Actor - 2014 (http://popculturedmoviemi.wix.com/popculturedmoviemike#!my-favorite-performances-supportingactor/c1d2g)

[George Monkey]

Still trying to get this posted ... new to the thread.

Oscar Picks From The Monkey

My Picks:

1) Production Design - Grand Budapest Hotel
2) Actress - Julianne Moore
3) Supporting Actress - Patricia Arquette
4) Supporting Actor - JK Simmons
5) Adapted Screenplay - The Imitation Game
6) Cinematography - Birdman
7) Song - "Glory" From Selma.
8) Original Score - Theory of Everything
9) Documentary Feature - Citizenfour
10) Animated Feature - How To Train Your Dragon 2
11) Best Actor - Eddie Redmayne
12) Costume Design - Grand Budapest Hotel
13) Visual Effects - Interstellar
14) Film Editing - Boyhood
15) Makeup - Grand Budapest Hotel
16) Foreign Film - Ida
17) Documentary Short - Crisis Hotline : Veterans Press 1
18) Animated Short - Feast
19) Sound Mixing - American Sniper
20) Sound Editing - American Sniper
21) Original Screenplay - Grand Budapest Hotel
22) Live Action Short - The Phone Call
23) Best Picture - Birdman
24) Best Director - Alejandro Inaritu

Tiebreaker: The Grand Budapest Hotel, 4

[Still Servant]

My Favorite Performances by a Supporting Actress - 2014 (http://popculturedmoviemi.wix.com/popculturedmoviemike#!my-fav-performances-supporting-actress/c10gu)

[mae]

My picks completed in post #103.

[fernandito]

Best Picture
“Birdman”

Best Actor
Michael Keaton – “Birdman”

Best Actress
Julianne Moore - “Still Alice”

Best Supporting Actor
J.K. Simmons - “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress
Patricia Arquette - “Boyhood”

Best Director
Richard Linklater - “Boyhood”

Best Animated Feature Film
“How to Train Your Dragon 2″

Best Adapted Screenplay
“The Imitation Game”

Best Original Screenplay
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”


Best Cinematography
“Birdman”


Best Visual Effects
“Interstellar”


Best Documentary Feature
“Citizenfour”


Best Documentary Short Subject
“Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1″


Best Film Editing
“Boyhood”


Best Original Song
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” from “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me”

Best Production Design
“Grand Budapest Hotel”


Best Live Action Short Film
“The Phone Call”

Best Animated Short Film
“Feast”


Best Sound Editing
“American Sniper”


Best Sound Mixing
“Whiplash”

Best Costume Design
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”


Best Foreign Language Film
“Ida”


Best Makeup and Hairstyling
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Original Score
“The Theory of Everything”


Tiebreaker : Grand Budapest Hotel, 4.

[fernandito]

Tentative^, I might change one or two things between now and tomorrow.

[Mattrick]

I have a feeling it's going to be like the last few years where the awards will be evenly split. Don't see best director/picture going to same movie like the past couple years have been. Still unsure about how I'm going. Doing my picks tomorrow.

[Still Servant]

Tentative^, I might change one or two things between now and tomorrow.

Either way, nice of you to join us this year.

:P

[Mattrick]

I still have to watch Selma, Wild and Two Days, One Night...will probably only get two of them done.

[Shannon]

Does anyone know where I can view the short films (especially the animated ones) online? Feast is available on YouTube, but none of the others are. Same goes for torrents.

[Shannon]

Best Picture: Boyhood

Best Actor: Michael Keaton

Best Actress: Julianne Moore

Best Supporting Actor: J.K. Simmons

Best Supporting Actress: Patricia Arquette

Best Director: Alejandro G. Inarritu

Best Animated Feature Film: How to Train Your Dragon 2

Best Adapted Screenplay: The Imitation Game

Best Original Screenplay: The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Cinematography: Birdman

Best Visual Effects: Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes

Best Documentary Feature: Citizenfour

Best Documentary Short Subject: Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1

Best Film Editing: Whiplash

Best Original Song: Glory

Best Production Design: Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Live Action Short Film: Boogaloo And Graham

Best Animated Short Film: Feast

Best Sound Editing: Interstellar

Best Sound Mixing: Whiplash

Best Costume Design: The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Foreign Language Film: Ida

Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Foxcatcher

Best Original Score: The Theory Of Everything

Tiebreaker: I'm going to say Budapest and Whiplash with 3 wins each topping the list. Birdman might also make this a three-win, three-way tie, but I'll stick with my three-win two-way tie. :)

[mae]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbW_XBuTAHA

[pathoftheturtle]

I don't really care about the Oscars any more, but it's hard not to feel anything at all. As a fan in particular of a few of those who are being recognized, it's gratifying to see careers breaking through to the top... although it's really that those films last year and roles just plain happened that matters. And anyway, inevitable feels or not, I of course will at least watch the damn things. Maybe even a couple of the commercials, as well.

[pathoftheturtle]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNOEz5fv1sU

[Shannon]

What's a commercial? ;)

[Heather19]

Alright here's my picks. I've really been going back and forth with a bunch of the categories. Alot this year seems up for grabs as opposed to last year when I feel like almost everything was set in stone. It does make for a much more interesting show this way.

Best Picture
Boyhood

Best Actor
Michael Keaton - “Birdman”

Best Actress
Julianne Moore - “Still Alice”

Best Supporting Actor
J.K. Simmons - “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress
Patricia Arquette - “Boyhood”

Best Director
Alejandro González Iñárritu - “Birdman”

Best Animated Feature Film
How to Train Your Dragon 2

Best Adapted Screenplay
Whiplash

Best Original Screenplay
The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Cinematography
Birdman

Best Visual Effects
Interstellar

Best Documentary Feature
Citizenfour

Best Documentary Short Subject
Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1

Best Film Editing
Boyhood

Best Original Song
Glory, from Selma

Best Production Design
The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Live Action Short Film
Boogaloo and Graham

Best Animated Short Film
The Dam Keeper

Best Sound Editing
American Sniper

Best Sound Mixing
Whiplash

Best Costume Design
The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Foreign Language Film
Ida

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Original Score
The Theory of Everything

Tiebraker - The Grand Budapest Hotel 4

[Mattrick]

This is no complete yet. Have to watch two more films before the show and will have it complete before showtime

Best Picture

“Boyhood” (Whiplash)



Best Actor

Michael Keaton - “Birdman” (Cumberbatch)


Best Actress

Rosamund Pike - “Gone Girl”


Best Supporting Actor

J.K. Simmons - “Whiplash”


Best Supporting Actress

Patricia Arquette - “Boyhood”


Best Director

Wes Anderson - “The Grand Budapest Hotel”


Best Animated Feature Film

“The Tale of the Princess Kaguya”


Best Adapted Screenplay

“The Imitation Game” (Inherent Vice)


Best Original Screenplay

Grand Budapest Hotel


Best Cinematography

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”


Best Visual Effects

“Interstellar”


Best Documentary Feature

“Virunga”


Best Documentary Short Subject

“White Earth”


Best Film Editing

“Whiplash”


Best Original Song

“Everything Is Awesome” from “The Lego Movie”


Best Production Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”


Best Live Action Short Film

“Aya”


Best Animated Short Film

“Me and my Moulton”


Best Sound Editing

“Interstellar”


Best Sound Mixing

“Birdman”


Best Costume Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”


Best Foreign Language Film

“Timbuktu”


Best Makeup and Hairstyling

“Guardians of the Galaxy”


Best Original Score

“The Imitation Game”


Tiebreaker: Boyhood/Budapest (4)

[fernandito]

Tentative^, I might change one or two things between now and tomorrow.

Never mind, keeping my list as is.

[mae]

I know Dragon 2 will win Best Animated feature but I'm still picking Kaguya, hoping for a miracle. It's pure art.

[Still Servant]

Good luck to all. Even Heather. :arg:

Best Picture

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Selma”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Actor

Steve Carell - “Foxcatcher”
Bradley Cooper - “American Sniper”
Benedict Cumberbatch - “The Imitation Game”
Michael Keaton - “Birdman”
Eddie Redmayne - “The Theory of Everything”

Best Actress

Marion Cotillard - “Two Days, One Night”
Felicity Jones - “The Theory of Everything”
Julianne Moore - “Still Alice”
Rosamund Pike - “Gone Girl”
Reese Witherspoon - “Wild”

Best Supporting Actor

Robert Duvall - “The Judge”
Ethan Hawke - “Boyhood”
Edward Norton - “Birdman”
Mark Ruffalo - “Foxcatcher”
J.K. Simmons - “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress

Patricia Arquette - “Boyhood”
Laura Dern - “Wild”
Keira Knightley - “The Imitation Game”
Emma Stone - “Birdman”
Meryl Streep - “Into the Woods”

Best Director

Alejandro González Iñárritu - “Birdman”
Richard Linklater - “Boyhood”
Bennett Miller - “Foxcatcher”
Wes Anderson - “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Morten Tyldum - “The Imitation Game”

Best Animated Feature Film

“Big Hero 6″
“The Boxtrolls”
“How to Train Your Dragon 2″
“Song of the Sea”
“The Tale of the Princess Kaguya”

Best Adapted Screenplay

“American Sniper”
“The Imitation Game”
“Inherent Vice”
“The Theory of Everything”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Screenplay

“Birdman”
“Boyhood”
“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Nightcrawler”

Best Cinematography

“Birdman”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Ida”
“Mr. Turner”
“Unbroken”

Best Visual Effects

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier”
“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”
“Interstellar”
“X-Men: Days of Future Past”

Best Documentary Feature

“Citizenfour”
“Finding Vivian Maier”
“Last Days in Vietnam”
“The Salt of the Earth”
“Virunga”

Best Documentary Short Subject

“Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1″
“Joanna”
“Our Curse”
“The Reaper”
“White Earth”

Best Film Editing

“American Sniper”
“Boyhood”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Whiplash”

Best Original Song

“Everything Is Awesome” from “The Lego Movie”
“Glory,” from “Selma”
“Grateful,” from “Beyond the Lights”
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” from “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me”
“Lost Stars,” from “Begin Again”

Best Production Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Into the Woods”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Live Action Short Film

“Aya”
“Boogaloo and Graham”
“Butter Lamp (La Lampe au Beurre de Yak)”
“Parvaneh”
“The Phone Call”

Best Animated Short Film

“The Bigger Picture”
“The Dam Keeper”
“Feast”
“Me and my Moulton”
“A Single Life”

Best Sound Editing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”

Best Sound Mixing

“American Sniper”
“Birdman”
“Interstellar”
“Unbroken”
“Whiplash”

Best Costume Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Inherent Vice”
“Into the Woods”
“Maleficent”
“Mr. Turner”

Best Foreign Language Film

“Ida”
“Leviathan”
“Tangerines”
“Timbuktu”
“Wild Tales”

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

“Foxcatcher”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Guardians of the Galaxy”

Best Original Score

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
“Mr. Turner”
“The Theory of Everything”

Most wins: 3 way tie - Whiplash, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Boyhood

[Heather19]

I know Dragon 2 will win Best Animated feature but I'm still picking Kaguya, hoping for a miracle. It's pure art.

Have you seen it? I really want to see that one and Song of the Sea. I too hope one of those beats How to Train Your Dragon 2.

[mae]

I know Dragon 2 will win Best Animated feature but I'm still picking Kaguya, hoping for a miracle. It's pure art.

Have you seen it? I really want to see that one and Song of the Sea. I too hope one of those beats How to Train Your Dragon 2.

Yup, it's beautiful.

[mae]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ludM8L2sIRg

[Heather19]

I know Dragon 2 will win Best Animated feature but I'm still picking Kaguya, hoping for a miracle. It's pure art.

Have you seen it? I really want to see that one and Song of the Sea. I too hope one of those beats How to Train Your Dragon 2.

Yup, it's beautiful.

Looks like its already out on DVD. I'll have to get it soon.

[mae]

It came out on Blu-ray/DVD last week. Get the Blu-ray (if you have the hardware): http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PHSDS0E/

[fernandito]

NOTE

I'll be locking this thread shortly before 8pm EST and will reopen it shortly after the awards are over.

You have until then to submit your list!

[T-Dogz_AK47]

Okay, I am going to have a pop at this. These are my picks.... 8)


Best Picture

Birdman

Best Actor

Eddie Redmayne - The Theory of Everything

Best Actress

Julianne Moore - Still Alice

Best Supporting Actor

J.K. Simmons - Whiplash

Best Supporting Actress

Patricia Arquette - Boyhood

Best Director

Alejandro González Iñárritu - Birdman

Best Animated Feature Film

How to Train Your Dragon 2

Best Adapted Screenplay

The Imitation Game

Best Original Screenplay

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Cinematography

Birdman

Best Visual Effects

Interstellar

Best Documentary Feature

Citizenfour

Best Documentary Short

Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1

Best Film Editing

Boyhood

Best Original Song

Glory - Selma

Best Production Design

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Live Action Short Film

The Phone Call

Best Animated Short Film

Feast

Best Sound Editing

American Sniper

Best Sound Mixing

Whiplash

Best Costume Design

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Foreign Language Film

Ida

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Original Score

The Theory of Everything



Tiebreaker

Film with the most Oscars - The Grand Budapest Hotel (4 Oscars)

(Best Original Screenplay, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup & Hairstyling and Best Production Design).


Film with the second most - Birdman (3 Oscars)

(Best Picture, Best Director and Best Cinematography).

[Mattrick]

Best Actress was the hardest category to choose from. They were all very good in very different ways. Rosamund Pike and Witherspoon were my favourite of the nominations. Usually Original Screenplay is easy to get right, but between Boyhood, Budapest, Birdman and Nightcrawler...all very deserving.

[Still Servant]

Keep your picks coming, guys! We have a nice turnout so far. I'd like to see more and I'm still waiting for some Oscar Contest heavy weights to weigh in, mainly Ricky. It's nice to see a new poster like George Monkey joining us, we need all hands on deck this year. Great to see T-Dogz as well. He's been around for a little while, but he's a first time player.

Just to let you guys know, I will be posting the winners after the show is over. As we know, it will be pretty late. I ask that you give me some time to correct all the lists. I also urge you guys to correct your own picks just to double check my work. Thanks! Enjoy.

[Ricky]

All right, here's my picks! And Heather, I agree about a lot being up in the air. I've been going back and forth with my picks all weekend. There are some categories where it really feels like it could be any of them.

Best Picture

"Boyhood"

Best Actor

Eddie Redmayne - “The Theory of Everything”

Best Actress

Julianne Moore - “Still Alice”

Best Supporting Actor

J.K. Simmons - “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress

Patricia Arquette - “Boyhood”

Best Director

Alejandro González Iñárritu - “Birdman”

Best Animated Feature Film

“How to Train Your Dragon 2″

Best Adapted Screenplay

“The Imitation Game”

Best Original Screenplay

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Cinematography

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Visual Effects

“Interstellar”

Best Documentary Feature

“Citizenfour”

Best Documentary Short Subject

“Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1″

Best Film Editing

“Whiplash”

Best Original Song

“Glory,” from “Selma”

Best Production Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Live Action Short Film

“The Phone Call”

Best Animated Short Film

“Feast”

Best Sound Editing

“American Sniper”

Best Sound Mixing

“Interstellar”

Best Costume Design

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Foreign Language Film

“Ida"

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Original Score

"The Theory of Everything"

[Still Servant]

There he is! I can rest easy now.

I knew you weren't going to miss this for the world, Ricky. Your score last year was fantastic. A solid 20. That stings to lose with a score like that. Hell, I had a nice 19 and came in 3rd.

[fernandito]

Closing now.

[Still Servant]

Well, another Oscar show is in the books. I enjoyed the show, I know it went long, but it felt like it flew by for me. No real surprises, except for Birdman going on a run there and Budapest taking home a bunch of technical awards. Overall, an okay show. It felt a little lacking. I can't quite put my finger on it. I will give my full thoughts tomorrow when I have a chance to really digest everything.

Anyway, really great job by everybody. We had a nice turnout this year with 11 participants. I was really surprised how well we all did in the smaller, lesser known categories. Kudos to us. Without further adieu the envelope please...

Ladies and gentlemen. We have a new winner. First time DT.org Oscar Contestant T-Dogz_AK47!! Congratulations T-Dogz! You did a great job. You had some tough competition, especially from newcomer George Monkey and Lurker. Great job guys (or primates).

2015

T-Dogz - 20
George Monkey - 19
Lurker - 19
Ricky - 18
Servant - 17
Feev - 17
Heather - 15
Shannon - 15
Pablo - 13
Stocker - 9
Matt - 6

Okay, guys. It was a lot of fun as usual. I will now go into my post Oscar funk. Don't forget to check my work just in case. Feev, merge this thread when you get the chance. Thanks

[Shannon]

I'm very surprised by the Best Actor and Best Picture winners. I thought for sure Keaton and Boyhood were going to take it. The only other category I got wrong that I care about is the Animated Film category. Big Hero 6 was really good, and better than Dragons 2 (my pick), but I didn't think it would win. Oh well, that was fun.

[mae]

I'm really surprised by most winners.

[Mattrick]

I have trouble thinking like the collective academy I guess haha.

I find it odd this year both best actor/actress went to movies I felt were pretty average. It was a good show overall. NPH is a good host. Maybe he can be the new Billy Crystal. Lord knows they've needed a new Billy Crystal.

Very surprised at Boyhood's showing. Not really surprised about what Birdman won. Each of those awards I said it's between this and Birdman. Probably the best year for speeches in awhile. Glad to see Desplat win. Now Deakins and DiCaprio need to get the statues they're owed.

[Lookwhoitis]

Bring back the old Billy Crystal. Doogie Houser sucks.

[pathoftheturtle]

Ok, Imna let you finish, but Beyoncé is the best Billy Crystal of anybody!

[Tommy]

So glad that Birdman won best picture! Between it and Boyhood, I will definitely be viewing Birdman again (and again) whereas I really have no desire to sit through Boyhood for a second viewing.

[Heather19]

Congrats T-Dogz! You guys did really good with your picks. This year was hard because most of the awards were so up in the air, I actually thought I did a lot worse than what I did :lol: I'm a little sad that Boyhood didn't take home more wins, I thought it should have gotten at least a few more. And is Birdman really that good? I wasn't expecting it to sweep so many categories. I enjoyed the show. I actually like it a lot more when the awards aren't so set in stone like the last few years have been. It makes it more fun to watch because you know there will be some surprises.

[Tommy]

And is Birdman really that good? .

Yes :dance:

[webstar1000]

And is Birdman really that good? .

Yes :dance:

I did not like it at all.... :(

[mae]

And now don't forget to turn your attention to our Best Comedy Tournament, launching shortly!

[ur2ndbiggestfan]

I hate discussing movies, since there are so many different likes and dislikes, but I thought Budapest Hotel was one of the worst stinkers I had to force myself to sit through, and among the nominated Best Picture films, Whiplash and American Sniper blew all the others out of the water. I kind of enjoyed Birdman; but Best Picture? No way in hell.
I totally agree on J.K. Simmons win for Best Supporting Actor. And I also agree that How to Train Your Dragon 2 was MUCH better than Big Hero 6, which I thought a noble failure. I did like Feast though, and since it's the only one of the animated short films I've seen, I'm glad it won its category.

[Heather19]

I think I mentioned this in the other thread, but I thought Feast was a cute little cartoon, but Oscar worthy, nevermind winner... Not that the animated short category was that strong this year because it really wasn't, I want to know how they go about nominating them, because I guarantee there were so many better ones produced this year.

[Tommy]

And is Birdman really that good? .

Yes :dance:

I did not like it at all.... :(

Not everyone will like it. The person I went to see it with hated it with a passion while I saw a masterpiece. Hate it or love it, it brings out strong emotions in folks that's for sure. I love films that are up for interpretation and this one is going to be analyzed and dissected for a long time

[webstar1000]

I hate discussing movies, since there are so many different likes and dislikes, but I thought Budapest Hotel was one of the worst stinkers I had to force myself to sit through, and among the nominated Best Picture films, Whiplash and American Sniper blew all the others out of the water. I kind of enjoyed Birdman; but Best Picture? No way in hell.
I totally agree on J.K. Simmons win for Best Supporting Actor. And I also agree that How to Train Your Dragon 2 was MUCH better than Big Hero 6, which I thought a noble failure. I did like Feast though, and since it's the only one of the animated short films I've seen, I'm glad it won its category.

I agree... Whipash and American Sniper were the best films in that category I thought as well.

[pathoftheturtle]

The Grand Budapest Hotel is a great film I found thoroughly enjoyable.

[mae]

Can't help but feel let down for the Oscars this time around. Michael Keaton and Edward Norton had great performances in Birdman and I thought Keaton was a lock for Best Actor, but Best Picture? No way. Very good film, sure, technically interesting, all that, but Boyhood was clearly the best of all the nominees, followed by Whipslash.

[webstar1000]

The Grand Budapest Hotel is a great film I found thoroughly enjoyable.

I liked that a lot too come to think on it.

[Tommy]

The only thing I really liked, other than the using the same actor gimmick, in Boyhood was Patricia Arquette's performance. If it were not for her, I probably would not have liked the film at all. I LOVE Grand Budapest Hotel but I knew there was no way in hell the academy was going to give it the Best Picture Award. American Sniper is a very good film but Eastwood has made much better. I still need to see Whiplash, now that the Oscars are over, my local theaters will bring the nominated and winning films back for a week or so, hope I get to see it in the theater

[Ricky]

Okay, I'm convinced that T-Dogz is just one of Heather's aliases.

I'm happy with my score (this year was the second best I've ever done). I definitely kept going back and forth between picks for more than a few categories, so there were a lot of surprises for me last night. In addition to some other categories, I'm surprised Birdman did so well. I thought Boyhood would take Best Picture (for the record, I didn't think either deserved it).

I thought it was a decent show. It was kind of unexciting but it moved pretty quickly, I thought. Neil Patrick Harris was a lot more low-key than I thought he would be, but I have to give him credit for continuously popping up throughout the show. He was definitely present. I think he's the first Oscar host that I can remember really sticking around a lot.

One of my favorite moments:

http://i61.tinypic.com/50mxwk.gif

:lol:


And is Birdman really that good? I wasn't expecting it to sweep so many categories.

I enjoyed it, but I don't really need to see it again. I definitely don't see it as Best Picture material.


among the nominated Best Picture films, Whiplash and American Sniper blew all the others out of the water.

Whipash and American Sniper were the best films in that category I thought as well.

Agreed! I knew neither really stood a chance but those were my favorites as well. I think Grand Budapest was my least favorite. I haven't seen The Imitation Game or The Theory of Everything yet though.

[Stockerlone]

I 'm worse every year .:orely:

[pathoftheturtle]

Can't help but feel let down for the Oscars this time around. Michael Keaton and Edward Norton had great performances in Birdman and I thought Keaton was a lock for Best Actor, but Best Picture? No way. Very good film, sure, technically interesting, all that, but Boyhood was clearly the best of all the nominees, followed by Whipslash.
They should have split the categories, at least. They should encourage filmmaking of different kinds. Absurdly, the fact that Birdman came out more recently probably had a big effect on the voting.

[ur2ndbiggestfan]

There should be a Best Drumming category. BIRDMAN and WHIPLASH would have been sure nominees in that one.

BTW - I saw STILL ALICE today and I agree with Julianne Moore's Best Actress win 100%.

[Still Servant]

Well, another Oscar night has come and gone. I always have an Oscar letdown afterwards and I'm feeling it right now. I really do love the Oscars dating back to when I was a kid. For some reason, this just didn't feel like the Oscars to me. I might have looked forward to it too much. There was something missing and I still can't put my finger on it. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed the show. NPH did a nice job, but he could have been better. The opening number had its moments, but I was expecting a little more from that too. The briefcase bit was a failure. They built it up all night and the payoff was minimal at best.

As for the awards, I think the biggest thing hurting the show is the fact that the acting awards have been a lock for the most part. The only surprise we got this year was Redmayne over Keaton. I kind of feel bad for Keaton, I'm not sure if he will get another shot at an Oscar. That was kind of a special role. Birdman for Best Picture was kind of a surprise. I thought Birdman and Boyhood would split Best Picture and Best Director. Then again, as the night progressed you could see Best Picture leaning towards Birdman.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I would like to see the Oscars celebrate the year in film a little more. With references and maybe a montage or two. During the pre-show they played a great 2014 movie mash-up. I'm also the only person that really cares about this, but I hated how they did the In Memoriam segment. I didn't like the drawn look to the pictures and I hated how they didn't show footage. I also think that Joan Rivers should have been included.

Well, we have a long movie year ahead of us. It's kind of exciting to think there are a whole new crop of films out there that we have no clue about, yet in less than a year we will be passionately debating their merits.

[Merlin1958]

Ahem, you guys let the, Brit win the Oscar picking title for 2015? For shame!!! LOL J/K

[Still Servant]

Ahem, you guys let the, Brit win the Oscar picking title for 2015? For shame!!! LOL J/K

Well, there's another Brit that never even enters the contest.

:angry:

[Merlin1958]

Ahem, you guys let the, Brit win the Oscar picking title for 2015? For shame!!! LOL J/K

Well, there's another Brit that never even enters the contest.

:angry:

Well, I don't know to whom you are referring, but now he's going to be running around telling folks he won it for "The Queen and all England" and shit. I hope he enters in the "March Madness" competition so we can get our U.S.A. mojo back again!! LOL

Hell, I could have lived with the Canadian, Roger Ebert winning as, Canada is kind of a suburb of the United States anyway, but a Brit? OMG!! LOL J/K LOL

[Mattrick]

They should have split the categories, at least. They should encourage filmmaking of different kinds. Absurdly, the fact that Birdman came out more recently probably had a big effect on the voting.

A lot of the films came out at the same time. Whiplash and Birdman were both limited released for the same week here in early November. Theory of Everything had just come out before it as well. Imitation Game, American Sniper, Selma came out last. Don't think release date had anything to do with it. Budapest came out last April and either had the most awards or tied with Birdman.

It's hard to say I disagree with them or they made bad choices. A lot of the awards couldn't have gone to numerous films. A few of the absolute locks like Simmons and Whiplash winning editing, Budapest winning Production/Costumes went to the right places.

[fernandito]

I loved, loved, loved Birdman... BUT, I strongly feel Whiplash was the best film of those nominated.

[Still Servant]

I loved, loved, loved Birdman... BUT, I strongly feel Whiplash was the best film of those nominated.

I feel the same way. I had the pleasure of watching both films back-to-back in theaters. It's one of those special movies days that I will remember for a while throughout the year.

[Still Servant]

Ahem, you guys let the, Brit win the Oscar picking title for 2015? For shame!!! LOL J/K

Well, there's another Brit that never even enters the contest.

:angry:

Well, I don't know to whom you are referring, but now he's going to be running around telling folks he won it for "The Queen and all England" and shit. I hope he enters in the "March Madness" competition so we can get our U.S.A. mojo back again!! LOL

Hell, I could have lived with the Canadian, Roger Ebert winning as, Canada is kind of a suburb of the United States anyway, but a Brit? OMG!! LOL J/K LOL

I'm referring to James aka DoctorDodge, of course.

[pathoftheturtle]

Yes, I'd also have to say that some of their awards went to the right places. But it's not hard for me to say they made bad choices; it's just so easy that it simply reminds me I still hardly care.

[Ricky]

For some reason, this just didn't feel like the Oscars to me. There was something missing and I still can't put my finger on it.

I thought it was just me, Mike. I'm with you. There was something missing. It all just felt incredibly low-key and not extravagant or dazzling like one expects awards shows like the Oscars to be. Which is extra weird because it seemed to go by fairly quickly.


I've said it before and I'll say it again, I would like to see the Oscars celebrate the year in film a little more. With references and maybe a montage or two.

Totally agree. I was actually thinking this during the show. For a 3+ hour show about movies, it sure didn't seem to be celebrated like it.


I'm also the only person that really cares about this, but I hated how they did the In Memoriam segment. I didn't like the drawn look to the pictures and I hated how they didn't show footage.

I actually really liked the drawn portraits, but hated that they didn't include video clips. I think this might have been one of their attempts to cut time (which makes no sense whatsoever because the show still ran over by 40 minutes).

[Heather19]

Well, another Oscar night has come and gone. I always have an Oscar letdown afterwards and I'm feeling it right now. I really do love the Oscars dating back to when I was a kid. For some reason, this just didn't feel like the Oscars to me. I might have looked forward to it too much. There was something missing and I still can't put my finger on it. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed the show. NPH did a nice job, but he could have been better. The opening number had its moments, but I was expecting a little more from that too. The briefcase bit was a failure. They built it up all night and the payoff was minimal at best.

As for the awards, I think the biggest thing hurting the show is the fact that the acting awards have been a lock for the most part. The only surprise we got this year was Redmayne over Keaton. I kind of feel bad for Keaton, I'm not sure if he will get another shot at an Oscar. That was kind of a special role. Birdman for Best Picture was kind of a surprise. I thought Birdman and Boyhood would split Best Picture and Best Director. Then again, as the night progressed you could see Best Picture leaning towards Birdman.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I would like to see the Oscars celebrate the year in film a little more. With references and maybe a montage or two. During the pre-show they played a great 2014 movie mash-up. I'm also the only person that really cares about this, but I hated how they did the In Memoriam segment. I didn't like the drawn look to the pictures and I hated how they didn't show footage. I also think that Joan Rivers should have been included.

Well, we have a long movie year ahead of us. It's kind of exciting to think there are a whole new crop of films out there that we have no clue about, yet in less than a year we will be passionately debating their merits.

So what was the payoff with the briefcase? I hate how the awards start so late out here, I have to get up super early for work on monday so I can never make it till the end, which sucks, because that's when the best awards are.

I know I've said this before but I think my problem with the Oscars is that in recent years I feel like they're going more for smaller films that get a very limited release. I think some of the movies were only shown her for a week or so and that's only because they got nominated for some awards. It really makes it harder to get into when you haven't seen many or any of the films nominated. I remember back (which didn't feel like that long ago, although maybe it was) when I had easily seen most if not all the films way prior to the awards show. Now you pretty much have to go out of your way to make that happen.

And I'm with you Mike about the In Memorium segment. That really bugged me to. I wish they had show actual clips or pictures of the people. And I was shocked Joan wasn't there as well. She was hugely related to the Oscars so for them to not include her was bizarre. They should make the segment a bit longer to include more people.

[T-Dogz_AK47]

Ahem, you guys let the, Brit win the Oscar picking title for 2015? For shame!!! LOL J/K

Well, there's another Brit that never even enters the contest.

:angry:

Well, I don't know to whom you are referring, but now he's going to be running around telling folks he won it for "The Queen and all England" and shit. I hope he enters in the "March Madness" competition so we can get our U.S.A. mojo back again!! LOL

Hell, I could have lived with the Canadian, Roger Ebert winning as, Canada is kind of a suburb of the United States anyway, but a Brit? OMG!! LOL J/K LOL


Yes I dedicate my win to this royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle, this earth of Majesty, this seat of Mars, this other Eden, demi-paradise; this fortress built by Nature for herself, against infection and the hand of war, this happy breed of men, this little world, this precious stone set in the silver sea, which serves it in the office of a wall, or as a moat defensive to a house, against the envy of less happier lands;
This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, THIS ENGLAND!!!


The Oscar prediction tournament belongs to The Lion!!! LOL! LOL! :D

http://i1287.photobucket.com/albums/a622/T-Dogz_AK47/8b99effd-e82e-4d65-8434-e7fcc5ed4329_zps2iqzzki2.jpg

[Still Servant]

I think it's funny how the Queen of Oscar was defeated by a guy from a country with an actual Queen. Heather, even Babe Ruth had a bad day every once in a while, you'll be ready to reclaim your crown next year.

As for the briefcase bit, NPH opened the case and there was an envelope inside and instead of actual picks, it was just a list of highlights from the night. Some had vaguely funny jokes associated with them. The writers would have been better off just going on Twitter and stealing jokes from viewers because they were infinitely more funny. They built it up all night, that's why it really failed for me.

[Heather19]

I've already started preparing for next year :lol:

I dvr'd the awards so maybe I'll go watch the end of it.

[Still Servant]

I've already started preparing for next year :lol:

I dvr'd the awards so maybe I'll go watch the end of it.

We all know you really DVR'd it so you can go back and watch it numerous times searching for tendencies for who wins the awards. I envision an 80's like montage of you just fast forwarding and rewinding while taking notes.

[Heather19]

:lol:

[pathoftheturtle]

Here, Variety's suggestions, partly echoing the points you made above. I'm not so sure about his take to go back on best picture nominees, and he overlooks how much of the general public are turned off by all the celebrating of wealth, the, you know, insane beauty standards, and that well-publicized shortfall on diversity, but some of these seem like a good ideas, like the one about modernizing engagement. I think the ceremony should salute film history but not embody so many ruts of old-fashionedness.

http://variety.com/2015/how-to-fix-the-oscars-in-5-easy-steps/ (http://variety.com/2015/film/news/how-to-fix-the-oscars-in-5-easy-steps-1201440804/)

[fernandito]

I've already started preparing for next year :lol:

I dvr'd the awards so maybe I'll go watch the end of it.

We all know you really DVR'd it so you can go back and watch it numerous times searching for tendencies for who wins the awards. I envision an 80's like montage of you just fast forwarding and rewinding while taking notes.

While Hearts On Fire plays in the background!

ahahahahaha

[Still Servant]

Here, Variety's suggestions, partly echoing the points you made above. I'm not so sure about his take to go back on best picture nominees, and he overlooks how much of the general public are turned off by all the celebrating of wealth, the, you know, insane beauty standards, and that well-publicized shortfall on diversity, but some of these seem like a good ideas, like the one about modernizing engagement. I think the ceremony should salute film history but not embody so many ruts of old-fashionedness.

http://variety.com/2015/how-to-fix-the-oscars-in-5-easy-steps/ (http://variety.com/2015/film/news/how-to-fix-the-oscars-in-5-easy-steps-1201440804/)

The article makes some very good points and I agree with all of them.

I disagree that the general public are turned off by all the celebrating of wealth. I don't think that has anything to do with the dip in ratings. Ratings were up last year. People watch sporting events like football, baseball and basketball in droves on a nightly basis. Even the cheapest athlete makes more than most actors and actresses. Americans and people around the world have always been enamored with the glitz and glamour of Hollywood. I think some of that has worn off in recent years because of things like social media and the internet.

When you know what George Clooney ate for breakfast does it really make him seem like a movie star? Not really.

[pathoftheturtle]

Even the cheapest athlete makes more than most actors and actresses.
And we all know it, but they don't have a sequence before football, baseball and basketball events for them to show their bling. Certainly not ALL much of the general public is turned off by that, it's clear that many like it. But if you think the only thing which social media has revealed is so much about the stars that it disillusioned people who all want to believe that they're old-fashioned gods, then I guess you just don't follow the same crowds I do.

[Still Servant]

Even the cheapest athlete makes more than most actors and actresses.
And we all know it, but they don't have a sequence before football, baseball and basketball events for them to show their bling. Certainly not ALL much of the general public is turned off by that, it's clear that many like it. But if you think the only thing which social media has revealed is so much about the stars that it disillusioned people who all want to believe that they're old-fashioned gods, then I guess you just don't follow the same crowds I do.

No, I agree there is a huge population that are disillusioned with Hollywood stars and the money they make, yet it doesn't stop them from going to the movies and dropping 30 bucks between tickets and popcorn. Nor does it stop people from watching The Big Bang Theory ever Thursday where the actors on that show are pulling in a couple mil per episode.

Also, many athletes wear diamond earrings and other expensive jewelry. Regardless, you don't need to see one's wealth to know it's there. Everybody who watches baseball knows that Alex Rodriguez will make roughly $20,000 per at bat this year. We don't need to see him sign the check before he walks up there.

[Mattrick]

I am sure that the actual cost for the actors to wear those designed dressers/tuxes isn't as much as you'd think. The designers want the publicity and, for whatever reason, what people wear to the oscar is a big deal. I couldn't give two shits, personally.

[Still Servant]

I am sure that the actual cost for the actors to wear those designed dressers/tuxes isn't as much as you'd think. The designers want the publicity and, for whatever reason, what people wear to the oscar is a big deal. I couldn't give two shits, personally.

Me neither. Many women love to watch that stuff though. It's true that much of the jewelry these women are wearing on the red carpet has to be returned the next day.

[Shannon]

I would wager that ninety percent of the dresses, tuxes, and jewelry is donated. It's great publicity.

[Lurker]

George Clooney? George Clooney? That guy from "Facts of Life"?

But seriously, I don't watch that red carpert stuff. I think it makes total idiots out of the "reporters" and most of the time is just awkward. And every year the preshow junk seems to increase. I guess it gives the "reporters" some excuse to be there.

Get a serious host, present a dignified show and move it along.

I must admit I like the music parts - the Lego song and Lady Gaga were awesome. And Dame Julie Andrews...they don't make 'em like that anymore.

Last word - filthy rich? I don't care so much about salaries - that's what the market will bear. But those $165,000 gift bags? Over the top.

[pathoftheturtle]

Right, I'm just talking about the Oscars. I don't begrudge people making money. I like movies. But people wearing clothes they don't buy to be photographed for drooling over by people who can't afford them is not my kind of fiction.

[Ricky]

And every year the preshow junk seems to increase.

This! I looked at the guide early on Sunday to see what time the show was, and saw that there was like 1.5 hours of red carpet coverage. I think there was even a pre-red carpet show show. I couldn't believe it. I don't mind a half-hour pre-show to build anticipation for the show (especially if the interviews are good and not the dumb "what are you wearing?" questions), but this year was a little excessive.

[Heather19]

I think E started their stuff around noon eastern time that day.

[Mattrick]

The red carpet has been this long as long as I can remember. Other preshows I don't know. Id watch live footage of the after-parties though lol

[Still Servant]

To whom it may concern, could you merge this thread with the official 2015 Oscar thread? This way next year I can find the results and rules and all that good stuff more easily.

Thank you kindly.

[Heather19]

Done :)

[Still Servant]

Thank you, Heather! I know that was probably hard for you to have to revisit that night.

:)

[Heather19]

So many bad memories :lol:

[Ricky]

I know that was probably hard for you to have to revisit that night.

:rofl: