The Oscars ceremony is one of the most awaited award shows of the year, with the fashion, the stars and most importantly, the films. The 84th annual Academy Awards holds quite the phenomenal list for the Best Picture Award this year. With a list of nine nominees, it will be an interesting toss up to see what film will win.
The first out of the gate is “War Horse” directed by Steven Spielberg, who needs no introduction. The film centers on a young man and his horse, Joey, as they travel through the world during World War I. “War Horse” was not only a novel, but also a stage play, which Spielberg adapted into this charging and dramatic film of bravery and chivalry.
Next, “The Artist,” a romantic film about a silent-movie actor in 1927 starring Jean Dujardin, a well-known foreign film actor, and John Goodman (“The Flinstones”). This picture was not only nominated for Best Picture this year, but also Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress, along with several other awards. The film’s director, Michel Hazanavicius, has also had his fair share of directing many foreign films, several of which feature Dujardin.
“Midnight in Paris” was directed by Woody Allen and follows a Hollywood legend. The romantic comedy stars Owen Wilson (“Drillbit Taylor”) and Rachel McAdams (“The Notebook”) as a couple watching the illusion of a different life, which might be better than the one they have now. Allen directed a masterpiece, which is why he was granted the nomination for Best Director yet again.
A tale of one team’s journey to fame in last year’s hit sports movie “Moneyball” with performances from Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill (“Superbad”) stunned audience across the country. Each nominated for an Academy Award, “Moneyball” could not have reached the stardom it did without either of them. The biographical drama was directed by Bennett Miller, who has been to the Oscars before for his directing of “Capote,” starring Phillip Seymour Hoffman.
George Clooney stars in “The Descendants,” a touching film of a man trying to connect with his two daughters after his wife is injured in a horrible boating accident. Shailene Woodley (“The Secret Life of an American Teenager”) debuts on the big screen as one of his daughters, along side Amara Miller, this film being her first.
A spectacular use of light and color, “The Tree of Life” is another nominee this year, and also another that stars Brad Pitt. Sean Penn (“Milk”) and Jessica Chastain (“The Help”) star alongside him in this epic tale of the consequences of witnessing the loss of innocence. Terrence Malick, the film’s director, is an up-and-comer of sorts, with only a few films to his name.
“The Help” is a realistic tale of hardship and hope that stars Emma Stone (“Easy A”) and Viola Davis, who is also nominated for Best Actress in “The Help.” The film’s ability to touch souls across the country is certainly reason enough for it to receive a nomination for Best Picture. A review of “The Help” can be found at The Eastern Echo website, as well.
“Hugo” was Martin Scorsese’s first attempt at a family-friendly film, which was not only a brilliant use of color and light but was 3-D. While it might sound unlikely that he would succeed at something so out of the ordinary for him, but the Academy certainly does not think so. “Hugo” stars Ben Kingsley (“Ghandi”), Sasha Baron Cohen (“Borat”) and Chloe Grace Mortez (“Kick-Ass”) in this tale derived from a novel titled “The Invention of Hugo Cabret.”
Sandra Bullock does it again in “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close,” a heart-breaking story of a boy’s desperate journey to stay connected to his father, who passed in the Sept. 11 tragedy. The director, Stephen Daldry, also directed another Academy Award nominated film, “The Reader.”
Cross your fingers for your favorite and enjoy the show. “The Descendants” was a beautiful touching piece that offered peaks and valleys of emotions, just as life always does, it very well could be the winner this year. The list is large and the nominees strong, but only time will tell who will win the prestigious Best Picture award at the Academy Awards on Feb. 26, 2012.
