Thursday, February 19, 2009

Oscar 2009 : The People

When I think of the people nominated for Oscars for acting and directing, I become a huge plate of waffles. There were so many excellent performances this year, any of these folks could win and be deserving. For best actor, the performance from Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler was strong and heart wrenching. On the other hand, Sean Penn brought a calm, joyful confidence to the depiction of Harvey Milk in the film Milk. For the best performance from an actress, Meryl Streep brings a fierce, emotional consistency to Sister Aloysius in Doubt. On the other hand, Anne Hathaway gives a tough, gritty performance, that makes the viewer uncomfortable, as a recovering addict in Rachel Getting Married. The only no brainer this year, is the award for best supporting role by an actor. Heath Ledger delivered the performance of the year as The Joker in The Dark Knight. The character he created, and the consistent, maniacal delivery is stunning. Even if he were still alive, I think he would win this award. It was just the best performance in this category this year. Another depiction of crazy could win an Oscar for Penelope Cruz, for her supporting role in Vicky Cristina Barcelona. As the volatile Maria Elena, she commands every scene she's in. The best director category, this year, reads like a best director's EVER list. Every one delivered fantastic films this year, but I think the Oscar should go to Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire. He orchestrated a piece that not only told a compelling story, but showed us India in a way I've never seen.
What a talented group of people!

2 comments:

2 Dollar Productions said...

Nice round-up . . . I agree w/ Ledger & Cruz and think both will win. I also agree about Rourke and Penn, although I am pulling for Rourke (but Penn is also one of my favorite actors).

As for actress, I'm guessing it will be Kate Winslet unless something odd happens. I'm ready to watch this thing, and see if they can keep it under 3 hours.

Linda said...

2D~I'd like to see Rourke win as well. Winslet is deserving, but I wonder if there will be a backlash from all the awards she's won already. The Academy can be strange like that. Under 3 hours? HA! I think I put 248 minutes into one of the Oscar Pools for a tie breaker. Be fun to see if these new producers shake it up as much as they let on.