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Oscars 2004
Gold Standard
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
The nominations yielded very few surprises, except for one knockout: Alan
Alda for The Aviator. Otherwise, we have the usual batch of a few very
good movies, too many mediocre movies and several glaring omissions.
I made my predictions in the heat of the moment on Tuesday morning,
and some of them are subject to change in the coming week. The Oscars
will be broadcast on Sunday, February 27, 2005.
February 28: The Aviator took home five awards, but Million Dollar Baby snatched
four top prizes, Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor. For
the most part, movies that deserved to win actually won. My own
predictions came in at 12 out of 21, about usual for me. So, until next year!
Please also see my past interviews with the nominees:
Johnny Depp,
Mike Leigh
Hilary Swank,
Laura Linney,
Richard Linklater,
Julie Delpy,
Ethan Hawke,
Charlie Kaufman & Michel Gondry,
Terry George
and Alexander Payne (coming soon).
And check out my contribution to an Oscar-related story in the
Las Vegas Weekly.
Nominees
| Jeff's Take
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Best Picture
The Aviator
Finding Neverland
Million Dollar Baby
Ray
Sideways
The Winner: Million Dollar Baby
My Prediction: Million Dollar Baby
My Vote: Million Dollar Baby
Unfairly Overlooked: Before Sunset
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Best Director
Clint Eastwood, Million Dollar Baby
Taylor Hackford, Ray
Mike Leigh, Vera Drake
Alexander Payne, Sideways
Martin Scorsese, The Aviator
The Winner: Clint Eastwood
My Prediction: Clint Eastwood
My Vote: Clint Eastwood
Unfairly Overlooked: Richard Linklater
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Best Actor
Don Cheadle, Hotel Rwanda
Johnny Depp, Finding Neverland
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Aviator
Clint Eastwood, Million Dollar Baby
Jamie Foxx, Ray
The Winner: Jamie Foxx
My Prediction: Jamie Foxx
My Vote: Clint Eastwood
Unfairly Overlooked: Johnny Depp, Secret Window; Paul Giamatti, Sideways
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Best Actress
Annette Bening, Being Julia
Catalina Sandino Moreno, Maria Full of Grace
Imelda Staunton, Vera Drake
Hilary Swank, Million Dollar Baby
Kate Winslet, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
The Winner: Hilary Swank
My Prediction: Hilary Swank
My Vote: Imelda Staunton
Unfairly Overlooked: Julie Delpy, Before Sunset
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Best Supporting Actor
Alan Alda, The Aviator
Thomas Haden Church, Sideways
Jamie Foxx, Collateral
Morgan Freeman, Million Dollar Baby
Clive Owen, Closer
The Winner: Morgan Freeman
My Prediction: Morgan Freeman
My Vote: Morgan Freeman
Unfairly Overlooked: David Carradine, Kill Bill - Vol. 2
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Best Supporting Actress
Cate Blanchett, The Aviator
Laura Linney, Kinsey
Virginia Madsen, Sideways
Sophie Okonedo, Hotel Rwanda
Natalie Portman, Closer
The Winner: Cate Blanchett
My Prediction: Cate Blanchett
My Vote: Cate Blanchett
Unfairly Overlooked: Natalie Portman, Garden State; Meryl Streep, The Manchurian Candidate; Sandra Oh, Sideways
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Foreign Language Film
The Chorus (Les Choristes) (France)
Downfall (Germany)
The Sea Inside (Spain)
As in Heaven (Sweden)
Yesterday (South Africa)
The Winner: The Sea Inside
My Prediction: The Chorus (Les Choristes)
My Vote: none
Unfairly Overlooked: Moolaadé; Notre Musique
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Adapted Screenplay
Richard Linklater, Kim Krizan, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke, Before Sunset
David Magee, Finding Neverland
Paul Haggis, Million Dollar Baby
Jose Rivera, The Motorcycle Diaries
Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor, Sideways
The Winner: Sideways
My Prediction: Sideways
My Vote: Before Sunset
Unfairly Overlooked: Alvin Sargent, Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, Michael Chabon, Spider-Man 2
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Original Screenplay
John Logan, The Aviator
Charlie Kaufman, Michel Gondry, Pierre Bismuth, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Terry George, Keir Pearson, Hotel Rwanda
Brad Bird, The Incredibles
Mike Leigh, Vera Drake
The Winner: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
My Prediction: The Aviator
My Vote: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Unfairly Overlooked: Kill Bill - Vol. 2; Dogville
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Animated Feature Film
The Incredibles
Shark Tale
Shrek 2
The Winner: The Incredibles
My Prediction: Shrek 2
My Vote: The Incredibles
Unfairly Overlooked: Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence
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Art Direction
The Aviator
Finding Neverland
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
The Phantom of the Opera
A Very Long Engagement
The Winner: The Aviator
My Prediction: Finding Neverland
My Vote: The Aviator
Unfairly Overlooked: The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
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Cinematography
Robert Richardson, The Aviator
Xiaoding Zhao, House of Flying Daggers
Caleb Deschanel, The Passion of the Christ
John Mathieson, The Phantom of the Opera
Bruno Delbonnel, A Very Long Engagement
The Winner: The Aviator
My Prediction: The Aviator
My Vote: The Aviator
Unfairly Overlooked: The Saddest Music in the World
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Sound Mixing
The Aviator
The Incredibles
The Polar Express
Ray
Spider-Man 2
The Winner: Ray
My Prediction: Ray
My Vote: Spider-Man 2
Unfairly Overlooked: Kill Bill - Vol. 2
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Sound Editing
The Incredibles
The Polar Express
Spider-Man 2
The Winner: The Incredibles
My Prediction: Spider-Man 2
My Vote: Spider-Man 2
Unfairly Overlooked: Kill Bill - Vol. 2
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Original Score
Jan A.P. Kaczmarek, Finding Neverland
John Williams, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Thomas Newman, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
John Debney, The Passion of the Christ
James Newton Howard, The Village
The Winner: Finding Neverland
My Prediction: Finding Neverland
My Vote: none
Unfairly Overlooked: Alexandre Desplat, Birth
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Original Song
"Look to Your Path (Vois Sur Ton Chemin)" from The Chorus (Les Choristes), Bruno Coulais, Christophe Barratier
"Al Otro Lado Del Río" from The Motorcycle Diaries, Jorge Drexler
"Learn to Be Lonely" from The Phantom of the Opera, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Charles Hart
"Believe" from The Polar Express, Glen Ballard, Alan Silvestri
"Accidentally in Love" from Shrek 2, David Bryson, Adam Duritz, David Immerglück, Matthew Malley, Dan Vickrey, Charles Gillingham, Jim Bogios
The Winner: "Al Otro Lado Del Río"
My Prediction: "Accidentally in Love"
My Vote: none
Unfairly Overlooked: "Vindicated" from Spider-Man 2, Dashboard Confessional
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Costume
The Aviator
Finding Neverland
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
Ray
Troy
The Winner: The Aviator
My Prediction: Finding Neverland
My Vote: none
Unfairly Overlooked: Kill Bill - Vol. 2
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Documentary Feature
Born Into Brothels
The Story of the Weeping Camel
Super Size Me
Tupac: Resurrection
Twist of Faith
The Winner: Born Into Brothels
My Prediction: Born Into Brothels
My Vote: none
Unfairly Overlooked: Tarnation
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Documentary Short
Autism Is a World
The Children of Leningradsky
Hardwood
Mighty Times: The Children's March
Sister Rose's Passion
The Winner: Mighty Times: The Children's March
My Prediction: n/a
My Vote: n/a
Unfairly Overlooked: n/a
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Film Editing
The Aviator
Collateral
Finding Neverland
Million Dollar Baby
Ray
The Winner: The Aviator
My Prediction: Million Dollar Baby
My Vote: Million Dollar Baby
Unfairly Overlooked: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
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Makeup
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
The Passion of the Christ
The Sea Inside
The Winner: Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
My Prediction: Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
My Vote: Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
Unfairly Overlooked: Million Dollar Baby
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Animated Short
Birthday Boy
Gopher Broke
Guard Dog (Bill Plympton)
Lorenzo
Ryan
The Winner: Ryan
My Prediction: n/a
My Vote: n/a
Unfairly Overlooked: n/a
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Live Action Short
Everything in This Country Must
Little Terrorist
7:35 de la mañana
Two Cars, One Night
Wasp
The Winner: Wasp
My Prediction: n/a
My Vote: n/a
Unfairly Overlooked: n/a
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Visual Effects
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
I, Robot
Spider-Man 2
The Winner: Spider-Man 2
My Prediction: I, Robot
My Vote: Spider-Man 2
Unfairly Overlooked: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
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