The 81st Academy Awards: 2009 Oscars

Ok, so I was wrong. The Dark Knight didn't even get nominated for Best Picture ahead of the 81st Annual Academy Awards. And I made the rash prediction that it would win the award. How humiliating!

Yet, not all is lost for us Batman frenzied fans of the shadowy caped hero! The remarkable production did receive 8 nominations for this year's Oscars. Including the expected "Best Supporting Actor" nomination for Heath Ledger as he wowed audiences with his outrageous performance as The Joker. Although, many have argued it should've been classified as a lead role. The full list of nominations for The Dark Knight, the second highest earning film of all-time, are listed below. I have also bracketed what I believe will be the biggest competition the film will have for each award.

The Dark Knight’s Oscar Nominations
(Biggest competition listed in brackets):

-Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
(Phillip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt)

-Achievement in Art Direction
(The Curious Case For Benjamin Button)

-Achievement in Cinematography
(The Curious Case For Benjamin Button)

-Achievement in Film Editing
(The Curious Case For Benjamin Button)

-Achievement in Makeup
(The Curious Case For Benjamin Button)

-Achievement in Sound Editing
(Wall-E)

-Achievement in Sound Mixing
(Wall-E)

-Achievement in Visual Effects
(The Curious Case For Benjamin Button)

As you can see, it will be no easy task for The Dark Knight to walk away with any of these awards, as the competition is stiff to say the least! I often had trouble deciding which of the nominated films would be the toughest competition.

It is also clear that the big film of the year is "The Curious Case For Benjamin Button". The cast of this masterpiece is led by the gifted Brad Pitt and supported by the equally talented Cate Blanchett. And a masterpiece indeed this film looks to be. Critics are labelling it as the "best film ever made", so it goes without saying that for most of the nominations where the Dark Knight finds itself pitted against this film, it will struggle to come away with the award.

The other tough opposition comes in the form of that little animated robot; Wall-E. The latest offering from Disney-Pixar has kicked up quite a storm of late, as some respected film reviewers have also found this futuristic animated film to be a classic of epic proportions. Although, it seems the Dark Knight has a slight edge over the lonely robot in the categories where they share nominations.

If this latest Batman production, The Dark Knight walks away with only 1 Oscar at this year's awards, it must be said that Heath Ledger's performance as The Joker is without doubt the greatest contender by a long way. Although, having said that, it would be a travesty for the film to walk away with only one Golden Statue given its high critical acclaim. But such is the nature of this Oscar beast, it is not unlikely that The Dark Knight walks away empty-handed.

We shall have to see.

Come the 22nd of February 2009, see we shall. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button could well re-write the history books. Already notching up 13 (yes, 13!) nominations! It won't be easy to beat this masterful cinematic artwork.

Considering my blog has produced a couple of predictions of late (Barack Obama and the Dark Knight) and considering I have a 50% record; why not have another bash?

My predictions for the following 2009 Oscars are:

-Best Actor:
Brad Pitt for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

-Best Supporting Actor:
Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight.

-Best Actress:
Meryl Streep for Doubt.

-Best Supporting Actress:
Taraji Henson for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

-Animated Feature Film:
Wall-E.

-Art Direction:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (This one's going to be close!)

-Cinematography:
The Dark Knight.

-Costume Design:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

-Directing:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

-Film Editing:
The Dark Knight (Another close one, here!)

-Foreign Language Film:
Waltz With Bashir.

-Make-Up:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

-Music (Score):
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

-Music (Song):
Wall-E.

-Best Picture:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

-Animated Short Film:
Presto.

-Sound Editing:
The Dark Knight.

-Sound Mixing:
The Dark Knight.
(Eish, these last two were tough calls!)

-Visual Effects:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

-Adapted Screenplay Writing:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

-Original Screenplay Writing:
Wall-E.

So there you have it! My predictions for the biggest awards ceremony of the year! Don't be surprised if I get a few wrong. But rest assured I will be taking some credit for any correct predictions. And if I get all my predictions right... Well, you come up with a fitting gift! :-)

Until next time...