The winners are finally announced. This year seemed like the most predictable. However, there were some surprises that no one saw coming. Particularily “Precious” winning Best Adapted Screenplay over “Up in the Air”, and “El secreto de sus ojos” winning Best Foreign Film over “The White Ribbon” and “A Prophet”.
As for the upsets, for me there were three: “Up in the Air” losing to “Precious”, Quentin Tarantino leaving empty handed and of course “The White Ribbon” losing both Best Foreign Film and Best Cinematography, two categories it deserved more than the competition.
Still overall, it was a good night, and it was a relief to see “The Hurt Locker” sweeping 6 big ones including “Best Picture” and “Best Director” making Bigelow the first female best Director winner.
As for my predictions, it wasn’t my best year. I have come up with more accurate predictions in the past. Still 16/24 is one of the better predictions out there.
*The films with a star next to them are the ones I predicted correctly:
*Best Motion Picture of the Year
Winner: The Hurt Locker (2008) – Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier, Greg Shapiro
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*Best Achievement in Directing
Winner: Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker (2008)
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*Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
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*Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
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Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
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*Best Achievement in Editing
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*Best Documentary, Features
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*Best Achievement in Visual Effects
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*Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score
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Best Achievement in Cinematography
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*Best Achievement in Sound Mixing
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Best Achievement in Sound Editing
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*Best Achievement in Costume Design
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*Best Achievement in Art Direction
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*Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
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Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
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*Best Achievement in Makeup
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Best Short Film, Live Action
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Best Documentary, Short Subjects
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Best Short Film, Animated
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Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen
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*Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song
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*Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
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*Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
The Cinephile Fix 
Wael well done you called it!
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Thanks Simon.
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In case or me, it’s 15/22 due to having giving up prediction of short film and short documentary winners. Winners of six categories are upsets indeed and I was very amused by nearly all of my small doubts turned out correct(except Best Actress winner). Without them, the ceremony would have been much more mediocre. I know Martin and Baldwin tried their best and there were some good moments(especially John Hughes Tribute), but the show was barely average compared to last year’s ceremony. It could have been better. In case of “Paranormal Activity” spoof, threesome of Baldwin, Martin, and Streep on bed would have been great.
But in case of viewing condition, I have to say this is the best time of all years to us here. Whenever they showed on cable TV, they made lots of fatal annoyances. When they stopped showing it on TV last year, we turned to Internet. Last year was a little dissatisfying, but we could see streaming live with good quality this year. There were indeed few jams, but that problem is nothing compare to countless and annoying comments from local anchors of that cable channel. I was so angry several times that I have even considered about kidnapping them and locking them in the room and being at the helm by myself, just like “The King of Comedy”.
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Haha. I’m glad you didn’t end up doing that. I should not have predicted the 3 categories of shorts as these were wild guesses and misses. It’s been a nice year overall with the Oscar season. It isn’t often that we anticipate a race between 2 great films and end up watching the better one win…
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Of the three big upsets, Avatar shouldn’t have won for cinematography (I mean, WTF?), and in a foreign language film category without a nomination for Almodovar’s Broken Embraces (haven’t seen it, but I’m going by reputation and the one film of Almodovar’s that I have seen), I wouldn’t have been surprised if (as the winner joked) Naa’vi had been considered a foreign language and so given Avatar a best foreign language film win. I also believe that The White Ribbon requires countless viewings to completely understand and appreciate, whereas I’m sure that Academy members who voted in this category only saw each film once, and went with the movie that they could connect with the most emotionally. It would have been more interested if Broken Embraces had faced off against The White Ribbon.
Then again, some of the films nominated in the Best Picture category should have been replaced by better films. At least my top four picks of the year were included, and the best film of the year won.
As for Precious winning adapted screenplay, it was a surprise, but not undeserved (and might have been predicted based on its strong showing at the Independent Spirit Awards).
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Don’t get me wrong. I loved “Precious” but judging by screenplay…I thought “Up in the Air” was much more impressive. Also “Inglorious Basterds” should’ve won for “Best Original Screenplay”. Yes, “The Hurt Locker” is an overall better movie but the originality of Basterds should’ve been rewarded.
As you said “Avatar” winning cinematography was plain stupid. I mean did the Academy not think for one second that it’s all CGI? Art Direction it deserved but cinematography??? No way. I like your interpetation of why “The White Ribbon” lost…the same can be said about “Cache” a couple of years ago by the same brilliant director.
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I should say my top four picks minus Sita Sings the Blues, since it was not eligible for nomination.
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I consider “Sita Sings the Blues” a better film than “Up”. I really think “Up” wasn’t as great as people make it out to be. The first ten minutes were amazing. the montage was heartbreaking but then it never lived up to that scene. I loved “Ratatouille” and “Wall-E” more. They were more deserving of a Best Picture nomination..too bad they came out in a 5 nominations year.
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I loved Wall-E too, but that first 10 minute of UP really set the tone for the rest of the film. Name me another animation film that has achieve that kind of emotional wreckage in a sequence so simple, so fast, with a score that fantastic. Of course the rest of the film can’t be at that exact level, if so I wouldn’t have made it through halfway. It’s a ballsy and excellent directorial choice to place it at the beginning of the film.
I still have to see Sita Sings the Blues. Damn, too many films to catch up on!
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Hi Grace 🙂
I agree the first ten minutes are beyond cinematic excellence. As much as I loved those ten or so minutes of “Up”, I prefer the awe inspiring “Wall-E” more…at least overall as a film. One scene in “Wall-E” that touched me in the same way as the “Up” montage is when Eva watches the videos of what Wall-E was doing while she was unplugged. You know standing in the rain preventing her from getting wet.
As for “Ratatouille”, well I may get slammed for this but it’s my favorite of the bunch. Probably because I like the Paris mood and warm atmosphere of the film. Also, Anton Ego the food critic may be my favorite Pixar character.
Grace, you can watch Sita Sings the Blues online for free. The creators don’t care about profits they just want people to see it. Doesn’t that just make you smile?
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I agree that Sita Sings the Blues was more creative than Up, and delved more into the animation bag of tricks, which is why I placed it just ahead of that movie in my rundown of the best movies I’ve seen this year, though that opening montage at the beginning of Up was awesome. In addition, the first time Ellie and Carl meet is so perfect to how children behave that I remember smiling, SMILING, throughout that entire scene (and yes, later in the movie, I cried). So, as far as that goes, Up did an excellent job of pulling at my heartstrings. As for Wall-E, the first time I saw that silent montage, I remember thinking, “Man, I wish I had seen this in a theater!”
I’m one of those people who thinks Quentin Tarantino should win an Oscar for every script he writes (and Meryl Streep should win for every role she plays–well, almost every role). Ditto for Charlie Kauffman. Only Linklater and Mamet are as good with dialogue, but while Linklater’s characters speak like well-educated college students and Mamet focuses on the rhythm of the words, Tarantino is just so damn creative with his dialogue. I thought he got screwed over for Kill Bill, as well (particularly Volume 2).
I haven’t seen Inglorious Basterds yet, but I plan to.
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You should see “Inglorious Basterds” as soon as humanly possible! I think “Pulp Fiction” contains the best dialogue, and “Reservoir Dogs” the best structure. I found his “Kill Bill” movies the most entertaining films though. I’m glad his next project is Vol. 3.
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