It’s far from a sport, but the race for the little award named Oscar is the most coveted award for films across the globe. Now that 2010 is over and done with, the most prestigious movies campaign for titles like Best Picture, Best Director or Best Screenplay. While televised ceremonies in the past seem undeserving of the three-hour slot they get, this year’s movies, as well as the young hosts, may just grab your attention. It’s around this time that critics and audiences start making their predictions — here’s some all-important information on the highly anticipated awards show.
When the number of films that could be nominated for Best Picture was expanded from five to 10, critics called blasphemy. But many of the top-grossing and critically successful films of 2010 might not have made the list if not for that expansion. “Inception,” the mind-bending heist thriller by Christopher Nolan, is a rare summer blockbuster that is getting recognized by many pre-Oscar awards, like the Golden Globes. Even animated movies like the much-beloved “Toy Story 3” might win a coveted nomination for Best Picture.
Just as the Best Picture expansion was an attempt by Oscar producers to gain younger viewers and expand their demographic, so is their choice of co-hosts for the Oscar ceremony this year. James Franco, who is getting hype for his performance as Aaron Ralston in “127 Hours,” is hosting the ceremony alongside Anne Hathaway, who wowed the crowd two years ago when she took to the stage with then-host Hugh Jackman in a hilarious duet. Hopefully she’ll get to bust out her singing chops this year as well, seeing as she is carrying out the hefty task of host duties along with Franco.
The producers last year also spruced up the sets and awards presentations in an attempt to woo viewers their way. However, even that didn’t liven up the long broadcast. The best moments of the ceremony are always the comedy routines, like Steve Martin and Tina Fey’s humorous presentation of Best Screenplay in 2009, Ben Stiller’s hilarious imitation of Joaquin Phoenix or his presentation of the Oscar for Best Makeup in full Na’vi get-up.
Hopefully the combined youth and talent of Franco and Hathaway will keep viewers watching, unlike the forgettable combination last year of Martin and Alec Baldwin. It’s surprising how the Oscars award people and films for great performances when it cannot consistently pull of great performances itself.
According to Oscar blogs like that of David Karger’s on Entertainment Weekly, the two top contenders for Best Picture are “The Social Network” and “The King’s Speech,” which greatly represent the generational divide that the Academy Awards is facing itself. This competition between the old and the new is reflected in other categories as well, where the fresh-faced Natalie Portman is facing off her elder Annette Bening in the Best Actress Category, and Colin Firth is facing competition from rising stars like James Franco and Jesse Eisenberg.
The age gap is showing, in the film categories themselves, in the ceremony and even in the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, who recently expanded their members to rising actors like Carey Mulligan and Dakota Fanning. Younger voters are sure to change the scheme of which movies are nominated, and may be friendlier to blockbuster films like “Inception” or last year’s “Avatar.” Edgier films may also gain more success amongst the younger generation, against more traditional Oscar films.
For those who want to get a head start in making predictions, here are just a few movies to watch besides those that were already mentioned: “The Kids Are All Right,” “Blue Valentine,” “The Fighter” and “Winter’s Bone.”
The greatest race this year is between the young and the old. This year’s Oscar ceremony will be intriguing, if just to see whether the Academy will vote for the actors and films that represent the new generation, or go the traditional route.
hbui@theeagleonline.com
