Academy Award Nominations: Oscar the Grouch | Clothes on Film – Part 8325

It’s Academy Award nomination day so let’s have a look at the line up. We have to warn you though; there are a couple of upsets.

First has to be that Zoe Saldana was not nominated in the Best Actress category. Guess computers and humans and acting and awards do not yet mix. Still, thanks to Saldana’s emotive performance in Avatar, surely now the debate has been properly opened?

Second upset is no Best Costume Design nomination for George Little (The Hurt Locker), Mayes C. Rubeo and Deborah Lynn Scott (Avatar) or Margot Wilson (The Road). Seems it is still the case that to be noticed by the Academy, in costume design anyway, period or period/fantasy is the way to go.

Do not get us wrong, the nominees are all worthy candidates. It would just be refreshing to see subtler, less immediately visible costuming get noticed too. Then again, Inglourious Basterds was not nominated either (as in the CDGs), so perhaps even exceptional period work is not enough any more; same for Jenny Beaven’s contribution on Sherlock Holmes.

There were ten nominations for Best Picture this year. No real surprises and we would put money (not much mind) on Avatar walking away with the trophy. Best Director on the other hand will probably go to James Cameron’s ex Kathryn Bigalow for The Hurt Locker. Or not. Who knows.

Best Actor would appear to be a shoe-in for George Clooney, although Jeff Bridges is getting rave notices for Crazy Heart. Jeremy Renner is supurb in The Hurt Locker, but he may end up getting lost among all those big names. Best Actress could be tougher to call. Our prediction? Gabourey Sidibe for Precious.

For Best Supporting Actor one would have to assume Christoph Waltz will take it for Inglourious Basterds. As for Best Supporting Actress, this year it is a relatively open field. Just to play the game we will say Vera Farmiga for Up in Air. Most likely, we will be wrong.

Check out the main contenders below and then follow the link to Empire for the ones we missed:

Costume design

Janet Patterson – Bright Star Catherine Leterrier – Coco Before Chanel Monique Prudhomme – The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus Colleen Atwood – Nine

Sandy Powell – The Young Victoria

Best Picture

Avatar The Blind Side District 9 An Education The Hurt Locker Inglourious Basterds Precious A Serious Man Up

Up In the Air

Best Director

James Cameron, Avatar Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds Lee Daniels, Precious

Jason Reitman, Up In The Air

Best Actor

Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart George Clooney, Up In The Air Colin Firth, A Single Man Morgan Freeman, Invictus

Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker

Best Actress

Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side Helen Mirren, The Last Station Carey Mulligan, An Education

Gabourey Sidibe, Precious

Best Supporting Actress

Penelope Cruz, Nine Vera Farmiga, Up In the Air Anna Kendrick, Up In the Air Maggie Gyllenhaal, Crazy Heart

Mo’nique, Precious

Best Supporting Actor

Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds Matt Damon, Invictus Stanley Tucci, The Lovely Bones, Woody Harrelson, The Messenger

Christopher Plummer, The Last Station

Best Adapted Screenplay

Neill Blomkamp, Terri Tatchell, District 9 Nick Hornby, An Education Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche, In The Loop Geoffrey Fletcher, Precious

Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner, Up In The Air

Best Original Screenplay

Mark Boal, The Hurt locker Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds Joel and Ethan Coen, A Serious Man Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman, The Messenger

Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Up

Art Direction

Avatar The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus Nine Sherlock Holmes

The Young Victoria

Cinematography

Avatar Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince The Hurt Locker Inglourious Basterds

The White Ribbon

Documentary Feature

Burma VJ The Cove Food Inc. The Most Dangerous Man In America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers

Which Way Home

Film Editing

Avatar District 9 The Hurt Locker Inglourious Basterds

Precious

Foreign Language Film

Ajami El Secreto Desus Ojos The Milk of Sorrow A Prophet

The White Ribbon

Make-Up

Il Divo Star Trek

The Young Victoria

Original Score

Avatar Fantastic Mr Fox The Hurt Locker Sherlock Holmes

Visual Effects

Avatar District 9

Star Trek

Best Animated Feature

Fantastic Mr. Fox The Princess and the Frog The Secret of Kells

The 82nd Academy Awards take place in sunny Los Angeles on 7th March. Should be a fun night, unless you are in the audience, in which case it will be a long night.

Source: Empire