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Best Original Screenplay

The Oscar for Best Original Screenplay is awarded to the writer(s) of a particular screenplay that is not based upon any prior published work.  This year’s group of nominees features some established, acclaimed writers and a couple Academy Award newcomers.  Between the nominated writers, they have been nominated for four writing Oscars and have won two.  Although there are some great scripts up for the award this year, one writer has already been sweeping the award shows for his screenplay, winning the BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Critics’ Choice Award—this year, it just so happens that I am in full agreement with the major award shows on this category.  The following is my Oscars ballot for this category, Best Original Screenplay:

WINNER: Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained)

Tarantino, also the director of the film, has created one of the greater scripts in modern cinema.  It has created a significant amount of controversy, but it has also been met with rave reviews from the critics—Quentin would not want it any other way.  Even though he did not win the Oscar in this category for Inglourious Basterds, which is by far my favorite movie of all time, he still has penned another masterpiece in Django.  Tarantino has a knack for creating some of the most remembered characters in the history of film, such as Mr. Blonde in Reservoir Dogs, Vincent Vega in Pulp Fiction, and Col. Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds, and in Django, he does not disappoint, creating unbelievably dynamic characters like Dr. King Schultz and Calvin Candie.  I will never know how the inner workings of Tarantino’s mind operate, but I am most unquestionably thankful for the written work he has given us.  Tarantino was previously nominated for two writing Academy Awards, both in the Best Original Screenplay category, and he won for Pulp Fiction (1994).

2. Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola (Moonrise Kingdom)

Wes Anderson, also the director of the film, and Roman Coppola have collaborated for their second screenplay together—their first was The Darjeeling Limited, a film they also co-wrote with Jason Schwartzman.  The end result of their most recent work together is an incredibly hilarious, wildly entertaining script.  This screenplay has the best shot among the other nominees to upset the heavyweight Tarantino, and if things fall correctly for Anderson and Coppola, they just may find themselves raising the Oscar statute.  This story is one of a kind.  It tells the story of young love from a unique perspective that only Anderson, one of the most distinctive writer-directors of our time, could do.  It is a refreshingly different film, and it has quickly become one of my favorites of all time.  Anderson was previously nominated for the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for The Royal Tenenbaums (2001).  Coppola has not previously been nominated.

3. Mark Boal (Zero Dark Thirty)

After Anderson and Coppola, Mark Boal has the next best chance to knock off Tarantino at the top in this category.  This is only Boal’s second screenplay, but just like his previous one for The Hurt Locker, it is action packed and beaming with award-winning quality.  Boal tells the story of the decade-long manhunt for Osama bin Laden, the most dangerous man on earth.  The Kathryn Bigelow/Mark Boal collaboration may not be quite the masterpiece it was for The Hurt Locker, but it is most assuredly not far behind.  I was on the edge of my theater seat throughout the entire film, and a lot of this is due to the spellbinding script Boal has written.  Mark Boal was previously nominated and won for Best Original Screenplay for The Hurt Locker (2009).

4. Michael Haneke (Amour)

Michael Haneke, also the director of the film, has finally been nominated by the Academy for his superb writing abilities.  Haneke is one of the most unknown writer-directors to the general public in the United States, but I have been aware of his work for quite a few years now.  The biggest film festival in the entire world is the Cannes Film Festival, and the top award at this festival is the Palme d’Or, an award given to the top film of the festival.  Only seven filmmakers have won this award twice since 1939—Michael Haneke is one of those (The White Ribbon, 2009, and Amour, 2012).  Haneke’s French-language film is intriguing, matchless, and invigorating.  The words he penned for this film not only earned him an Oscar nomination, but it also resulted in lead actress Emmanuelle Riva being nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role.  Haneke has not previously been nominated for any Academy Awards in either of the two writing categories.

5. John Gatins (Flight)

Gatins is an established screenwriter, but to be completely honest, none of his scripts have been anything close to award worthy.  His screenwriting filmography includes Summer Catch, Hardball, Coach Carter, and Real Steel, but his big break finally came with the 2012 film Flight.  In this film, Gatins uses an incredibly entertaining story line to keep our attention, but it is the complexities he has created in regards to human morality that truly sets his script apart.  I am surprised that he received a nomination, but after seeing the film, it is definitely justified.  Gatins has not previously been nominated for any Academy Awards in either of the two writing categories.

Writers snubbed in this category: Paul Thomas Anderson (The Master)

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 8 – Les Misérables

Les Misérables is a film directed by Tom Hooper, with a screenplay by William Nicholson and Herbert Kretzmer.  The movie is based on the original musical by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg, which itself was based on the Les Misérables novel (1862) by Victor Hugo.  The film tells the story of Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman), an ex-convict who French policeman Javert (Russell Crowe) hunts down for decades after Valjean breaks parole and flees.  Valjean becomes the mayor of a town in France, and after he meets a factory worker named Fantine (Anne Hathaway), he agrees to raise her daughter Cosette.  While trying to evade Javert’s pursuit for many years, Valjean and Cosette endure many challenging circumstances, ultimately leading to a third-act climax set against the backdrop of the June Rebellion of France.  Hooper’s unique interpretation of the infamous musical tells a gripping story of love and redemption.

To say the least, I was blown away by the riveting compassion of Hooper’s production from the very first scene.  One of my favorite films of all time is Hooper’s The King’s Speech, and much like the Best Picture winner from 2010, the cinematography is unbelievably stylistic and continually mimics the overall theme of the movie.  I am an avid fan of musicals, and this one is right up there with some of my most favorites.  The one element that this musical includes compared with others is the constant singing.  Yes, I understand it IS a musical, but in other ones like The Phantom of the Opera (2004) or Sweeney Todd (2007), spoken word is still utilized throughout—in Les Misérables, there are at most seven or eight spoken words, while the rest of the entire script is sung.

I was more than impressed with the acting in the film.  The actors and actresses are clearly amazing singers, as they probably would not have gotten the roles without this being true, but Hooper employs an exceptionally talented group of performers with top-notch acting skills.  The two performances that have garnered the most critical acclaim are from Jackman and Hathaway—and I most definitely feel they have more than earned the praise they are receiving.  Hugh Jackman gives the performance of his career as the lead character Jean Valjean, and in each scene he is featured, he demands our attention and does so with the priceless proficiency of a veteran actor in Hollywood.  On the other hand, Hathaway features in only a short period of time during the film, but she makes the most of her chance on the screen.  Her rendition of “I Dreamed a Dream” was taped in a single close-up shot, and Hathaway blows all other musical numbers in the film out of the water in just a few minutes.

The supporting cast does not miss a beat in the movie, and some of the film’s best scenes feature these actors and actresses.  Some of these highlights come courtesy of seasoned veteran Russell Crowe as Javert, Amanda Seyfried as the older Cosette, and Eddie Redmayne as Marius.  In my opinion, the best of the supporting performances, however, are by Sacha Baron Cohen as Thénardier, Helena Bonham Carter as Madame Thénardier, and the underrated Samantha Banks as the Thénardier’s daughter Éponine.  With the tremendous musical numbers, award-winning acting, and lucrative filmmaking, Les Misérables is definitely one of the best movies of 2012.  Les Misérables is rated PG-13 for suggestive and sexual material, violence, and thematic elements.

Academy Award nominations for Les Misérables:

Best Picture (Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Debra Hayward, and Cameron Mackintosh, Producers)

Actor in a Leading Role (Hugh Jackman)

Actress in a Supporting Role (Anne Hathaway)

Costume Design (Paco Delgado)

Makeup and Hairstyling (Lisa Westcott and Julie Dartnell)

Best Original Song (“Suddenly,” Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg and lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublil)

Production Design (Eve Stewart and Anna Lynch-Robinson)

Sound Mixing (Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson, and Simon Hayes)

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

9. Beasts of the Southern Wild

10. Looper

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo

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Best Adapted Screenplay

The Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay is awarded to the writer(s) of a particular screenplay adapted from another source, such as a book or play.  This year’s nominees are writers who, for the most part, have little history at the Academy Awards; in fact, between the nominees, they have only received two previous Oscar nominations in writing categories.  Some marvelous screenplays are nominated this year, but it is still pretty up in the air in regards to who will win—David O. Russell has won the BAFTA in this category and Tony Kushner has won the Critics’ Choice Award.  After seeing each of the nominated films, I have my produced my own assessment of the nominees; thus, the following is my Oscars ballot for this category, Best Adapted Screenplay:

WINNER: David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook)

David O. Russell, also the director of the film, adapted this screenplay from Silver Linings Playbook (2008), the debut novel of author Matthew Quick.  The film itself is among the best of the entire year, and much of the acclaim is directly due to Russell’s unblemished screenplay.  The screenplay is entertaining and captivating, and Russell’s words led to Academy Award nominations for each of his principal actors and actresses (Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro, and Jacki Weaver).  David O. Russell faces stiff competition from a year of astounding adapted screenplays, but I believe his work stands alone among this group of heavy hitters.  Russell has not previously been nominated for any Academy Awards in either of the two writing categories.

2. David Magee (Life of Pi)

David Magee adapted this screenplay from Life of Pi (2001), a fantasy adventure novel by Yann Martel.  The original novel has received a great deal of critical acclaim, including the Man Booker Prize for Fiction, and Magee uses a spectacular screenplay to help director Ang Lee recreate this remarkable story.  Even though the film utilizes some extraordinary special effects, the movie would be nothing without the superb script from Magee.  David Magee was previously nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for Finding Neverland (2004).

3. Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

Lucy Alibar and director Benh Zeitlin adapted this screenplay from Juicy and Delicious, a one-act play originally written by Alibar herself.  The film has received a high level of critical praise, including a nomination for Best Picture, and that says a lot about the script considering the film features a group of amateur actors with little to no previous acting experience.  The biggest advantage for the writers is the fact that Alibar wrote the original play, giving her a much more in-depth perspective for the feature-film version.  Neither Alibar nor Zeitlin have been previously nominated for any Academy Awards in either of the two writing categories.

4. Chris Terrio (Argo)

Chris Terrio adapted this screenplay from a 2007 magazine article by Joshuah Bearman, detailing the true events of the covert mission “Canadian Caper” during the Iran Hostage Crisis.  Terrio is a little-known personality in the film industry—his only major involvement with a full-length feature film was as the director of the 2005 movie Heights.  In my opinion, Argo is not one of Ben Affleck’s strongest directorial efforts, but the film is carried throughout by a solid script.  The root of the drama and emotion in the film is Terrio’s writing, and his nomination is well deserved.  Terrio has not been previously nominated for any Academy Awards in either of the two writing categories.

5. Tony Kushner (Lincoln)

Tony Kushner adapted this screenplay from Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln (2005), a biographical book by historian Doris Kearns Goodwin.  Even though the book covers Lincoln’s entire presidency, Kushner focused his script on the final four months of the president’s life, specifically his efforts to abolish slavery.  Kushner’s work is by far one of the most fluent and eloquent screenplays of the year, but in my opinion, it is rather bland and boring.  I feel that covering such a short, specific period of time in American history takes out all opportunities for creativity in a script, and it simply lacks a whole lot of action or entertainment.  Kushner was previously nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for Munich (2005).

Writers snubbed in this category: Stephen Chbosky (The Perks of Being a Wallflower)

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 9 – Beasts of the Southern Wild

Beasts of the Southern Wild is a film directed by Benh Zeitlin, with a screenplay written by Zeitlin and Lucy Alibar.  The story follows 6-year-old Hushpuppy (Quvenzhané Wallis), a young girl living with her father Wink (Dwight Henry) in an area of southern Louisiana below the levee known as “The Bathtub.”  A fierce storm is making its way towards the Bathtub, and the reality that Hushpuppy thought she knew is shifted upside down in an abrupt rage.  The storm leaves her house under water, and Hushpuppy must learn to survive while also taking care of her father who becomes gravely ill.  With the help of the tight-knit Bathtub citizens, coupled with her keen sense of imagination, Hushpuppy fights to conquer these catastrophes.

Beasts of the Southern Wild is by far one of the best films released this past year.  It is fantastical, creative, and enjoyable in every sense of the word.  Part of my fascination and appreciation for this movie is the fact that no one associated with this project is anyone I have ever heard of before.  Remarkably, this is Zeitlin’s very first feature film, having only created short films in his days as a filmmaker.  The screenplay he and Alibar wrote was also adapted from a one-act play (Juicy and Delicious) originally written by Alibar herself.

Aside from the little-known director and writer, some absolutely awe-inspiring acting performances are showcased in this film, and the two lead actors were complete amateurs entering the production of this movie.  In fact, Dwight Henry was simply a local business owner in New Orleans, and after developing a relationship with Zeitlin and the other members of his film crew prior to production of the movie, he was offered the role due to his own emotional experiences during Hurricane Katrina in 2005.  Before viewing the film, I had no knowledge Henry’s pure lack of acting experience, and quite frankly, he fooled us all.  The passion and power he brings to the role of Wink is done in a way that only veteran actors could do—but here stands Henry, someone who had never acted before, giving viewers an enthusiastically exquisite portrayal of a man that has fallen on hard times of epic proportions.

The most breathtaking performance in the film, however, is that of Quvenzhané Wallis.  Wallis, now nine years old, was only six when the movie was filmed.  That fact alone makes her brilliantly astonishing portrayal of Hushpuppy even more impressive.  In the film, Hushpuppy is driven by her creative imagination and her fascination with animals, and Wallis’ emotional depiction makes you think it is truly Quvenzhané on the screen in these disastrous circumstances and not Hushpuppy.  Her interpretation of this character has not gone unnoticed—she has been nominated for many significant awards, including Best Actress in a Leading Role at the Academy Awards.  After seeing this film, Wallis’ nomination is more than justified.  Beasts of the Southern Wild is rated PG-13 for thematic material including child imperilment, some disturbing images, language, and brief sensuality.

Academy Award nominations for Beasts of the Southern Wild:

Best Picture (Dan Janvey, Josh Penn, and Michael Gottwald, Producers)

Actress in a Leading Role (Quvenzhané Wallis)

Directing (Benh Zeitlin)

Best Adapted Screenplay (Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin)

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

10. Looper

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 10 – Looper

Looper is a film written and directed by Rian Johnson.  The movie is set in Kansas City during the year 2044, thirty years before time travel is invented.  Time travel is illegal in the future, and it is only used by the mob on the black market.  When the mafia wants someone killed, they send that person back thirty years where trained assassins, called “loopers,” kill them.  The story follows Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a looper who encounters his own self when the older version of himself (Bruce Willis) is sent back from the future to be assassinated.  When a looper comes across their older self, an event known as “closing the loop,” they must kill the older version of themselves or face death by the mob.  When Joe’s older self gets away, a series of wild, electrifying events take place.  Ultimately, the deeper reason for the elder Joe’s return is revealed and the fate of human existence consequently hangs in the balance.

Looper is clearly one of the year’s most confusing films; however, in this case, confusing does not necessarily equal an immediate dislike for the movie.  In fact, Looper was one of my personal favorites released in 2012, and I rushed to buy it on Blu-ray the day it came out.  Rian Johnson (Brick, The Brothers Bloom) creates a landscape in both the past and future that resembles the darkest of dystopian societies, and his use of short, expeditious scenes plays perfectly along with this theme.  If you are a fan of sci-fi thrillers, you will definitely want to check this one out—it is essentially a mix between The Terminator (1984) and Minority Report (2002).

Since Looper was released in September, it has garnered significant critical acclaim, and it was featured on a variety of important lists of top films of the year.  With that being said, it has not been nominated for any major movie awards.  The only noteworthy nomination is for Best Original Screenplay at the Writers Guild Awards.  Even without any momentous award nominations, I still view Looper as one of the best movies of 2012.

One strong point of the film that critics across the nation have praised is the cast.  Gordon-Levitt (500 Days of Summer, Premium Rush) plays young Joe and Bruce Willis (Pulp Fiction, Die Hard) plays the elder Joe, and the two bear a striking resemblance in the film—this is because makeup artist Kazuhiro Tsuji created various prosthetics for Gordon-Levitt to wear to resemble Willis’ facial features.  In the diner scene when both versions of Joe are sitting across a table from each other, it is blatantly visible how alike they truly look.  Not only does Gordon-Levitt mimic Willis’ physical features, he also engages in the action scenes of the film in the same nature as Willis has been doing for his entire career in movies like the Die Hard and The Expendables franchises.

Solid supporting performances are given by Emily Blunt (The Devil Wears Prada, The Young Victoria) as Sara, the farmhouse owner that young Joe seeks refuge at while hiding from the mafia, and Jeff Daniels (Dumb and Dumber, The Newsroom) as Abe, the guy the mob sent back to the past to manage the loopers.  The breakout performance, however, is from Pierce Gagnon as he portrays Sara’s son Cid, a young, innocent-looking boy who ends up being more than meets the eye.  Looper is rated R for strong violence, language, some sexuality/nudity, and drug content.

Academy Award nominations for Looper:

NONE

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo

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Best Cinematography & Best Film Editing

The Oscar for Best Cinematography is awarded to a particular film for the finest artistic and technical decisions in regards to the creation of the moving images on the screen.  The award is presented to the Director of Photography (Cinematographer) from the film.  The following is my Oscars ballot for this category, Best Cinematography:

WINNER: Skyfall (Roger Deakins)

2. Life of Pi (Claudio Miranda)

3. Anna Karenina (Seamus McGarvey)

4. Django Unchained (Robert Richardson)

5. Lincoln (Janusz Kaminski)

 

The Oscar for Best Film Editing is awarded to a particular film for the finest post-production digital editing.  The award is given to the film’s principal editor.  The following is my Oscars ballot for this category, Best Film Editing:

WINNER: Zero Dark Thirty (Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg)

2. Life of Pi (Tim Squyres)

3. Silver Linings Playbook (Jay Cassidy and Crispin Struthers)

4. Argo (William Goldenberg)

5. Lincoln (Michael Kahn)

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 11 – The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a film directed and written by Stephen Chbosky.  The movie follows Charlie Kelmeckis, a young teenager entering his freshman year in high school in a suburb of Pittsburgh, PA.  Charlie enters high school as a troubled and introverted kid, struggling to find anyone to become friends with.  He ultimately meets two seniors, Sam (Emma Watson) and Patrick (Ezra Miller), and they quickly bond into an inseparable trio of best friends.  Throughout the rest of the school year, Charlie engages in many of the common events associated with adolescent years, such as partying and finding his first love, but deep, dark secrets of Charlie’s past continue pulsating through his veins and attempt to lead him down a disastrous path.

This movie, as stated above, was directed and written by Stephen Chbosky.  The novel of the same name that Chbosky adapted for this screenplay was actually a book that he himself wrote in 1999.  Even though Chbosky has written screenplays before, most notably the 2005 film Rent, this was his first attempt at directing a feature film.

After viewing the film, I was impressed with so many aspects of the production.  For starters, I thought it was a near-flawless screenplay with the perfect combination of drama and comedy, mixed with some quirky, witty dialogue.  Considering Chbosky adapted his own book, which had already been described as a modern cult classic, I was expecting his screenplay to receive some award considerations.  His screenplay has been nominated for a few different awards, including Best Adapted Screenplay at the Writers Guild Awards, but I believe his work is most definitely worthy of higher praise.

Chbosky also brought together a very young, but seasoned cast to portray the roles of his multifarious characters.  Logan Lerman (3:10 to Yuma, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief) plays the role of Charlie, and on the screen, an unmistakably shaken teenager is illustrated, and this is almost entirely due to the skillful performance of Lerman.  Emma Watson takes on her biggest role since the Harry Potter franchise officially ended in 2011, and it is easy to determine from her performance in this film that she is not a one-dimensional actress—she indubitably has a bright career ahead of her in the film industry outside of Hogwarts.  Lastly, Ezra Miller (City Island, We Need to Talk About Kevin) gives an invigorating performance as Patrick.  Aside from Charlie, Patrick is one of the most complex characters of the entire film, and Miller delineates the character consummately as a kid trying to suppress the emotional, melodramatic issues in his life by providing humor to everyone around him.  The Perks of Being a Wallflower is rated PG-13 for mature thematic material, drug and alcohol use, sexual content including references, and a fight – all involving teens.

Academy Award nominated for The Perks of Being a Wallflower:

NONE

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 12 – The Dark Knight Rises

The Dark Knight Rises is a film directed by Christopher Nolan, with a screenplay by Nolan and his brother Jonathan Nolan. The movie takes place about eight years after the conclusion of The Dark Knight (2008), as Bruce Wayne hangs up his Batman mask and goes into a self-imposed banishment from crime fighting after he assumes blame for the death of District Attorney Harvey Dent. Batman and Commissioner Gordon believed making the caped crusader disappear might be the only way to restore sanity to Gotham City for good. However, with the emergence of the disastrous terrorist Bane (Tom Hardy), Wayne realizes he must end his exile in an attempt to save Gotham from the dangerous attacks that await at the hands of this masked killer.

Ever since The Dark Knight was released in 2008, fans of this superhero franchise have been anxiously awaiting the epic conclusion to Christopher Nolan’s masterpiece. In my opinion, Nolan’s productions have been much more groundbreaking than any other set of Batman movies ever created. The older Batman films seemed over-the-top and cheesy with horrible special effects and beyond terrible acting; conversely, Nolan’s movies are much darker and made more in the mold of a full-fledged drama rather than an action film, not to mention the stellar casts he employs. He has made world-class movies like The Prestige and Inception, and his Batman series has never disappointed to impress both theatergoers and critics.

The biggest surprise to me about this movie is the fact that it is not nominated for any Academy Awards. The Dark Knight was up for eight Oscars and won two, and even though the newest film did not have an acting performance like Heath Ledger’s role as the Joker in 2008, I felt that The Dark Knight Rises was almost just as good of a movie as its predecessor. It features unbelievable visual effects and other aesthetics, but for some reason, the Academy chose not to recognize any of these features of The Dark Knight Rises this year. I think people went into the movie expecting way too much considering how great of a film The Dark Knight was, and in my opinion, this hype is what led to many people not enjoying the movie.

Christian Bale turned in another solid performance as Bruce Wayne, and once again, the supporting performances lent to an overall illustrious ensemble of acting skill. Anne Hathaway plays the physically demanding role of Selina Kyle, or Catwoman, and Tom Hardy joins forces with Nolan again (Inception, 2010) to play the cataclysmic terrorist Bane. Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, and Gary Oldman reprise their roles as Lucius Fox, Alfred Pennyworth, and Commissioner James Gordan, respectively. If that list of actors is not enough to prove the major-league level Christopher Nolan is at as a filmmaker, he also enlists Joseph Gordon-Levitt (John Blake) and Academy Award winner Marion Cotillard (Miranda Tate) to round out the long list of performers.

I believe Nolan ended his Batman trilogy on a firm, conclusive note, and I believe this film ranks second among the three. It provides much more drama and astounding visual effects than Batman Begins (2006), but without a performance similar to that of Ledger, it simply cannot meet the astonishing standards that The Dark Knight has set for the trilogy. The Dark Knight Rises is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some sensuality, and language.

Academy Award nominations for The Dark Knight Rises:

NONE

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Best Sound Editing & Best Sound Mixing

The Oscar for Best Sound Editing is awarded each year to a particular film possessing the most fine and aesthetic sound editing or sound design.  The award is generally given to the film’s Supervising Sound Editors.  The following is my Oscars ballot for this category, Best Sound Editing:

WINNER: Skyfall (Per Hallberg and Karen Baker Landers)

2. Django Unchained (Wylie Stateman)

3. Zero Dark Thirty (Paul N.J. Ottosson)

4. Life of Pi (Eugene Gearty and Philip Stockton)

5. Argo (Erik Aadahl and Ethan Van der Ryn)

The Oscar for Best Sound Mixing is awarded to a particular film featuring the finest and most melodious sound mixing and recording.  The award is usually presented to the film’s production sound mixers and re-recording mixers.  The following is my Oscars ballot for this category, Best Sound Mixing:

WINNER: Skyfall (Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell, and Stuart Wilson)

2. Les Misérables (Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson, and Simon Hayes)

3. Life of Pi (Ron Bartlett, D.M. Hemphill, and Drew Kunin)

4. Argo (John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff, and Jose Antonio Garcia)

5. Lincoln (Andy Nelson, Gary Rydstrom, and Ronald Judkins)

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 13 – Flight

Flight is a film directed by Robert Zemeckis, with a screenplay written by John Gatins.  The film follows veteran airline pilot Whip Whitaker (Denzel Washington) as he courageously rescues an aircraft after an unknown calamity causes the plane to descend into a devastating crash.  Following the crash, Whitaker is hunted down by the media and hailed as a hero for his uncanny ability to act in a time of distress and land his plane.  However, as the movie progresses, questions begin to arise about the true events that took place before, during, and after the crash.  More and more is revealed and everyone learns that the situations surrounding the crash prove much more convoluted and disturbing than was first thought.

From the outside, this movie has all of the necessary parts to make it look like a fascinating piece of film work.  For starters, the director is Robert Zemeckis, renowned for directing critical and commercial movie successes like the Back to the Future trilogy, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Forrest Gump, and Cast Away.  The film also features a screenplay by John Gatins, the writer of Summer Catch, Hardball, Coach Carter, and Real Steel.  Lastly, the lead actor is Denzel Washington—that alone will make film fans flock to the theaters in droves.

The obvious thing to discuss next is the crash scene.  I do not want to give anything away for those that have not seen the movie, but it is the scene that begins the movie and sets the stage for the rest of the plot to transpire.  There have been some scary, stressful plane-crash scenes in film—the hijacking scene from United 93 and the plane crash at the beginning of Zemeckis’ own Cast Away—but the crash in Flight is a version of those scenes but on steroids.  The scene is done in a manner that only Robert Zemeckis could dictate, and for the duration of the entire scene, you will be glued to your seat in sheer terror.  After the crash scene, however, the film seems to drag on for the next couple of hours.  Although some other interesting events do take place, the majority of the movie cannot live up to the first 20 minutes or so.

John Goodman, Don Cheadle, and Kelly Reilly turn in solid supporting performances, but like in most movies, Denzel steals the show.  The man has become one of the premier actors of this generation in the film industry, and I truly cannot think of a Denzel movie that I disliked him in—he’s just that good.  Washington is nominated for Best Actor for his performance, marking his sixth Academy Award nomination.  In Flight, he portrays a man that has not only lost his grip on reality, but he has lost a sense of his own inner identity.  Washington releases himself into the character, and his immersion on the screen is everything you could want in a performance.  If it was not for an incredibly competitive Best Actor field this year, Washington might very well find himself holding another golden statue.  Flight is rated R for drug and alcohol abuse, language, sexuality/nudity, and an intense action sequence.

Academy Award nominations for Flight:

Actor in a Leading Role (Denzel Washington)

Writing – Original Screenplay (John Gatins)