Oscars 2011: Five films too many

Suppose you are handed a list of the 10 Best Picture nominees at the Academy Awards to watch over a week. At the very least, you expect to be entertained, if not astounded, by each. But what awaits you on this quest to watch last year’s 10 best, handpicked by the high priests of global entertainment — the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences — are some flashes of brilliance, ‘potential’ great films, some ‘how-did-this-get-nominated’ moments, and a lot of boredom.

 

It doesn’t help that the Academy has gone back (since last year) to nominating 10 films in the Best Picture list instead of the usual five. The intention is clear: 10 nominations ensure that films that excel in many other departments but are nudged out of the race for the top prize also get a look in.

 

But now the Academy finds itself in a position where it has to fill the slots with not-so-great films only so that they can complete the quota of 10, leading to mediocrity making its way into the list — the same reason why it was shrunk to five in 1944.

 

Having 10 nominations made sense in a year like 1939, considered by many to be the ‘greatest year in Hollywood history’ — with Gone With The Wind, The Wizard Of Oz, Wuthering Heights, Goodbye Mr Chips, Stagecoach, Mr Smith Goes To Washington, Dark Victory, Ninotchka, Love Affair and Of Mice and Men all releasing that year.

 

Last year, though, was no 1939. We saw innovative stories, interesting adaptations and great entertainers, but finally it comes down to just four or five films that truly deserve a shot at the most coveted award in the movie business. The others have one or two things going for them — some have amazing performances, others excel in technical departments — but they aren’t what you call Best Picture material.

 

Winter’s Bone: Bleak chances

 

In Winter’s Bone, for instance, Jennifer Lawrence gives a pitch-perfect performance as a 17-year-old in search of her fugitive father who is being hunted by both police and criminals. Set in The Ozarks region in the US, the film takes a gritty look at the methamphetamine business in the province and its impact on rural families. Director Debra Granik shuns flamboyance and opts for a sedate approach, the quiet narration reflecting the lives of the locals. Though well made, the film doesn’t appeal to a larger audience and would have gone unnoticed worldwide if it hadn’t made it to this list. Its best shot at the Oscars is if Lawrence can spoil the party for a certain Natalie Portman in the Best Actress category, though that’s unlikely.

 

Toy Story 3: Puzzling choice

 

Then there is Toy Story 3. The revival of Toy Story was eagerly awaited by fans who wanted to see how the makers would take the story forward in this age of advanced technological wizardry. The producers, however, resisted the temptation to resort to SFX-madness, settling for a more conventional animation technique and a good story. The film is a welcome addition to its two predecessors, but its presence in the Best Picture nomination is a bit puzzling, especially since it’s also one of the nominees in the Best Animation Film category.

 

Can we safely assume it will win in that category then? If the Academy deems it to be among the 10 best films of the year, surely it’s going to be the best animation film out there? And if that’s the case, why nominate the other animation films when they won’t win? In any case, while last year’s Up truly deserved to be in the running for Best Picture, Toy Story 3 is no Up.

 

The Kids Are...: Not so right

 

The Kids Are All Right is another well-made film — about a lesbian couple, their kids, and their relationship with the children's sperm-donor dad — that stands almost no chance of winning the Best Picture Oscar. It has one of the best ensemble casts seen in 2010 and some great performances by Julianne Moore (not nominated, surprisingly), Mark Ruffalo (nominated, surprisingly) and Annette Bening (nominated and standing a good chance, too). Director Lisa Cholodenko’s witty script, which she co-wrote with Stuart Blumberg, is another strong point. The only frothy, light-hearted film in the mix (unless you consider The Social Network frothy and light-hearted), The Kids Are All Right is a great DVD watch but not worthy of Best Picture. Don’t be surprised if the film goes empty-handed on Oscar night.

 

True Grit: Outside chance

 

Barring the above three, which are sure to come nowhere close to the Best Picture award, at least four of the other seven could be surprise winners. True Grit is one of them. It’s impossible to ignore the Coen brothers, and this is their adaptation of the novel of the same name by Charles Portis. It stays truer to the source than the earlier True Grit, made in 1969 with John Wayne in the lead, which won the legendary star his sole Academy award.

 

Though True Grit may be the perfect tribute to the Westerns of yore, the film is not a patch on some of the Coens’ best work. To begin with, it’s impossible to enjoy the film without subtitles, and while that needn’t be a major impediment (how else would you enjoy foreign language films?), the almost incomprehensible dialogues irritate at times. Also, the film is sluggish for the most part, and in the end, what remains with you are Roger Deakins’s amazing cinematography and a plucky performance by Hailee Steinfeld as 14-year-old Mattie Ross. Don’t be surprised if she pips Melissa Leo in the Best Supporting Actress category.

 

The Fighter: This one for Bale

 

The Fighter is what you call a ‘performance-driven film’. Melissa Leo, as mentioned above, is a front-runner for Best Supporting Actress. As the slightly controlling but concerned mother of boxers Dicky Edlund and ‘Irish’ Micky Ward, on whose lives the film is based, Leo is outstanding. Despite having to live up to some truly ‘heavyweight’ boxing films (Raging Bull, the Rocky series, Somebody Up There Likes Me, Million Dollar Baby, etc), The Fighter manages to land some hard punches. But what makes it a must-watch is the performance of Christian Bale as a boxer-turned-crack-addict. The actor had lost a lot of weight for his part in The Machinist and once again, he transforms himself into an emaciated junkie in The Fighter. When you see Geoffrey Rush in The King’s Speech, you think no one can beat him to the Best Supporting Actor award. Then you see Bale and think no else deserves to win more. My vote goes to the Dark Knight.

 

While the above five films impress you in some way or the other, it is doubtful if any of them would have made the cut had the nominations been kept to five. True Grit may have its share of loyalists, but does it measure up to the following five?

 

127 Hours: Franco comes of Age

 

Take 127 Hours, for example. Canyoner Aron Ralston’s true story comes alive on screen in this Danny Boyle adaptation which has the power to stun you. Boyle’s achievement is all the more remarkable because he doesn’t have much to play with; after all, it's the story of a guy stuck under a boulder for five long days. But the filmmaker makes it an experience which is moving, exhilarating, and deeply satisfying, aided by some good camerawork and AR Rahman’s score. James Franco delivers a performance that realises the tremendous potential the actor had displayed in some of his earlier films. Don’t be surprised if Franco creates an upset in the Best Actor category. 127 Hours would have probably had a great shot at Best Picture too — it’s far superior to Boyle’s earlier Slumdog Millionaire — but it has some serious competition.

 

Black Swan: The dark horse

 

The tale Darren Aronofsky narrates in Black Swan — of a ballet dancer finding a dark side to her that she didn’t know existed — would be thought of as “niche” and “experimental”. But the filmmaker, with the help of all the tools a director has at his disposal — cinematography, sound, editing, and actors — makes a film that is more mainstream than you can imagine. It’s a dark theme, yes, and it will haunt you long after you’ve seen the film. But, more importantly, Aronofsky’s psychological thriller has you hooked from the very first frame and enthrals you with its characters, opulence, and ballet. Though the Best Director award at earlier ceremonies this year have been a two-way battle between David Fincher and Tom Hooper for The Social Network and The King’s Speech, respectively, it would be nice to see Aronofsky cause an upset for making a film that takes you on a wild trip. And for presenting Natalie Portman with the role she was born to play.

 

The King’s Speech: Won’t stutter  

 

While on the subject of acting, let’s cut to the chase. This is Colin Firth’s year. In The King’s Speech, he is the duke of York who becomes king in spite of a speech deficiency which he partially overcomes with the help of his tutor-turned-confidant played by Geoffrey Rush. No one’s ever doubted Firth's acting credentials and the golden statuette has always been within striking distance for him. This time, he might just get his hands on it. Ably supported by Rush, who delivers a performance that is the perfect foil to Firth’s, the two create magic on screen.

 

As much as it’s driven by performance, The King’s Speech is among the best films made in 2010. Director Hooper recreates the atmosphere of the royal days of yore to near perfection and the film is a strong contender in the Best Cinematography and Best Art Direction categories. But will it spoil The Social Network’s party in the Best Film and Best Director categories?

 

Inception: Raw deal

 

There is one more film we dare not forget. Inception is probably the film that stands to lose the most at the Academy Awards this year. Christopher Nolan, to begin with, didn’t get a Best Director nomination. Inception was primarily a director’s film and if not for Nolan’s wizardry, it would not have been the same.

 

There are various arguments against the film, starting with its complex storyline to the open ending which left many flummoxed. But what cannot be denied is that with Inception, Nolan pushed boundaries and did what many wouldn’t have thought possible.

 

The film lost out on the Best Editing nomination too, which Lee Smith deserved for keeping all those various layers intact through his deft work. Among the categories it’s nominated in, Inception at least deserves a Best Original Screenplay award for its sheer novelty and the dexterity with which Nolan fleshed out the complex plot, but is likely to lose out to The King’s Speech. Sadly, its mainstream success seems to get in the way of glory at the Oscars. The Academy has been to known to ignore blockbusters lately, and Inception might become prey to that. Nolan’s been there before. The Dark Knight didn’t even land a Best Film nomination, Inception at least got one.

 

The Social Network: The favourite

 

The big one on Oscar night, it seems, will be The Social Network. Fincher’s adaptation of The Accidental Billionaires took a leaf out of true life — like The Fighter, The King’s Speech and 127 Hours — and turned it into compelling viewing for audiences around the world. Of course, if not for Aaron Sorkin’s watertight script and a haunting score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, all of whom look set to win, the film would not have been the same.

 

You may think of The Social Network as playing to the gallery a little too much, but it does so without compromising on the interesting story at the heart of it. With a far-from-perfect protagonist, who comes out triumphant but at a cost, The Social Network kept the ‘cool’ quotient high and made an impact, too. A very ‘now’ film, it stands to win the top prize at the Oscars this year and it should, too. Especially since Inception probably won’t. I’ll settle for one of the two.