Oscar Predictions 2009

Time again for my fearless Oscar predictions. Last year, I didn’t do too badly but I did screw up royally with the short films. I’m hoping to make a comeback in those categories this year. Here are my predicitons of who I think will win (not necessarily who I want to win, but luckily I’m a big fan of Slumdog Millionaire). Here they are from smaller awards to the bigger ones.

Live Action Short Film: Spiielzeugland (Toyland)
(Holocaust film. Need I say more?)
Animated Short Film: Presto
(It’s Pixar. It was before WALL-E. The bunny is adorable.)
Documentary Short: The Witness – From the Balcony of Room 306
(Witness to the assassination of Martin Luther King? Why not?)
Sound Editing: The Dark Knight
(Gotta give Dark Knight something. They like to give blockbusters this award.)
Sound Mixing: The Dark Knight
(More often than not, the film that wins Best Sound Editing, wins this one too.)
Original Score: Slumdog Millionaire
(The driving rhythm of this film helped make it the masterpiece it is.)
Original Song: “Jai Ho” (Slumdog Millionaire)
(Who doesn’t like a Bollywood dance number? It’s pretty infectious.)
Visual Effects: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
(An old deformed body with Brad Pitt’s face pasted on. I’m impressed.)
Make Up: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
(The work it took to make Brad Pitt look 90 and also 25? Outstanding!)
Costume Design: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
(The Duchess is the safe choice, but I think Button needs more stuff.)
Art Direction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
(This is a hard one. Button is more epic in scale though.)
Film Editing: Slumdog Millionaire
(The flashbacks and quick cut editing make this film a great candidate.)
Cinematography: Slumdog Millionaire
(Slumdog is beautifully shot. Interesting angles all around.)
Documentary Feature: Man on Wire
(Guy walks on a wire between the WTC towers. I’m still awaitng the rental.)
Animated Feature: WALL-E
(This one should have benn nominated for Best Picture. I think it’s a lock.)
Foreign Language Film: Waltz with Bashir
(It’s either Waltz or The Class. I’m going with the animated war film.)
Adapted Screenplay: Slumdog Millionaire
(A pretty safe bet on this one.)
Original Screenplay: Milk
(I’d prefer WALL-E, but Hollywood needs to support this trailblazer.)
Best Director: Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)
(Shooting Slumdog was pretty ambitious. He’ll get his reward.)
Best Supporting Actress: Taraji P Henson (Benjamin Button)
(This race is wide open with Winslet gone. I’m going on a huge limb.)
Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight)
(It’s a lock. I will be dumbfounded if he doesn’t win this one.)
Best Actress: Kate Winslet (The Reader)
(It’s between Winslet and Streep. Winslet’s never won. It’s about time.)
Best Actor: Sean Penn (Milk)
(Penn was amazing job as Harvey Milk. I would prefer Jenkins or Langella though.)
Best Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
(Frost/Nixon doesn’t have enough going for it but great acting. The Reader is polarizing the voters with its raw subject matter. Milk has some great elements but not enough for the top prize. Benjamin Button is epic and is second-runner up. Slumdog Millionaire not only has the momentum, but it has all its elements working together in perfect harmony. It’s the feel-good underdog story of the year.)

So let’s see how I do on Sunday. Who are you predicting? Feel free to comment especially if you think I’m way off.