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I got to thinking the other day, when I was doing the Academy Award predictions note, that the Academy Awards are a good way to keep track of really good movies. But every once in a while you see a category in which the academy just messed up. A prime example is the Hurt Locker beating Avatar for Best Picture (say all you want about the Hurt Locker, Avatar is by far the better of the two movies). Now after thinking about that, I asked myself what actually is the Best Picture? And not just for one year every year in which movies have been a major form of entertainment. I racked my mind and came to the conclusion that there is no way in hell that you can pick just one movie so I’ve decided to do top 3 in every major category of films. So without any further ado here are my picks.  

Drama:

       1)      Schindler’s List

       2)      The Shawshank Redemption

       3)      The Godfather

Action/Adventure:

       1)      Inception

       2)      The Matrix

       3)      Equilibrium

Comedy:

       1)      Blazing Saddles

       2)      The Hangover

       3)      Hot Fuzz

Romance (not the same as romantic comedy)

       1)      The Notebook

       2)      Casablanca

       3)      Gone With the Wind

Romantic Comedy (not the same as Romance)

       1)      Shakespeare in Love

       2)      Sleepless in Seattle

       3)      You’ve Got Mail

Science Fiction

       1)      Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

       2)      Star Trek (2009)

       3)      2001 A Space Odyssey

War:

       1)      Black Hawk Down (Do not argue. By far the most accurate war movie of all time)

       2)      Saving Private Ryan

       3)      Platoon

Western:

       1)      The Good, The Bad, The Ugly.

       2)      Once Upon a Time in the West.

       3)      True Grit (2010)

Movies Based on Graphic Novels:

       1)      V for Vendetta

       2)      300

       3)      Sin City

The 83rd Academy Awards

This upcoming academy awards seems the most difficult to call, at least for a long time... but i'll go ahead and make some early predictions. You can refer to this to see what or who the contenders are for each category http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/83/nominees.html.

Actor in a Leading Role: Jeff Bridges. Back to back awards seem very likely for Bridges after a spectacular performance in True Grit. (If he does win this year he would become the first person to win back to back since Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump and Philadelphia) 

Back Up: Colin Firth. The Academy might award him due to the fact he deserved it for a Single Man when Jeff Bridges won or Crazy Heart.  

Actor in a Supporting Role: Christian Bale. I have not seen The Fighter yet but have heard nothing but phenomenal reviews especially when talking about Bale. Bale is an amazing actor whose whole life has been devoted to the cinema. I feel that this role is just the break he needed to claim his award. 

Back Up: None (I really feel that Matt Damon deserved a nomination at the very least so i won't acknowledge anyone else in this category).

Actress in a Leading Role: Natalie Portman. Incredible performance in Black Swan. Was taken aback by the amount of dedication she put into the role (over a years worth of training and countless injuries [reminiscent of bales work for the Mechanist]). Very captivating performance. Set a new standard for both actors and actresses in terms of level of commitment to their roles. 

Back Up: eh Annette Benning I guess. None of the nominations really come close to Natalie Portman's level. 

Actress in a Supporting Role: With two actresses nominated for the same category for the same movie. I'm in inclined to the more prominent actress in the movie. Amy Adams is a cute and wonderfully charming woman. and the way she did a complete Hanksian 180 shocked me. I think if the rumors are true then there is no one better deserving.

Back Up: Hailee Steinfeld. Did a womans acting job at a childs age. Did a better job than Haley Joel Osment in the Sixth Sense (who did better than Michael Caine that year).

Animated Feature Film: Toy Story 3. there is no reason to support this. Its the better movie. PERIOD.

Art Direction: Inception.

Back Up: Alice in Wonderland.

Cinematography: Inception

Back Up: Black Swan

Costume Design: Alice in Wonderland

Back Up: The Tempest

Director: Tom Hooper. Great direction and exectution. Never seen a movie by him before this. Wonderful job.

Back Up: The Coen Brothers. Always a good bet. They once again did a fantastic job.

Documentary: Restrepo. Incredible good. Best documentary since Super Size Me.

Documentary (short subject): Haven't seen nor heard one of these. 

Film Editing: Black Swan

Back Up: The Social Network

Foreign Langauge Film: Biutiful. Javier Bardem gives the Academy a familiar face to vote for in a usually, well, Foreign category. I see no reason it won't win.

Makeup: The Wolfman.

Music Original Score: Inception. Hans Zimmer's best work yet.

Back Up: The Kings Speech

Music Original Song: Country Song will more than likely win. 

Back Up: Toy Story Three

I DON'T REALLY KNOW MUCH ABOUT THE REST AND AM GETTING TIRED SO I WILL DO BEST PICTURE AND END THERE. 

Best Picture: Its a tie for either the Kings Speech or True Grit. Both are wonderful films. Both very provocative. I can't lean either way on this. But if I have to I'd say the 83rd Annual Academy Award for Best Picture does to....

The Kings Speech. I feel that this was a unique movie with a great combination of acting with Collin Firth and Geoffrey Rush. Its a new taste and presented incredibly well by Tom Hooper. If this doesn't win expect either True Grit or Inception to take home the Oscar.  

I hope you appreciate this. I'll be happy to take suggestions.