Following last Friday's nomination announcements, moviegoers across America anxiously await the 84th Academy Awards, which take place at Hollywood's majestic Kodak Theatre Feb. 26. For the past few years, the Academy has handed its coveted statues to a series of predictable winners - was anyone shocked by The King's Speech's or The Hurt Locker's victories? - and weak filmic fields and obvious frontrunners snuffed out the upsets and controversies which once lit Oscar ceremonies aflame. Fortunately, however, the 2012 Oscars have the potential to shake things up.
This year's pool of Best Picture prospects will raise a ruckus as family film enthusiasts are pitted against edgier arthouse audiences in the fight for the golden statue. Michel Hazanavicius's The Artist, a black-and-white silent film which steals small bits from a slew of better films, has garnered enough buzz from starry-eyed critics to give it the competitive edge for the time being. That said, Alexander Payne's The Descendants, a smarter and savvier comedy which lives in the present, has begun to surge toward the top spot, followed closely by Martin Scorsese's Hugo, an eye-roller of an adventure film. Still, The Artist seems destined to snatch the statue.
The Artist's leading man, however, appears less likely to strike Oscar gold in the Best Actor in a Drama category. Jean Dujardin's shallow and soulless turn as silent star George Valentin simply does not measure up to George Clooney's raw performance in The Descendants. As Matt King, a Hawaiian lawyer who must confront the sense of emptiness and loss which surrounds his life, Clooney disappears into his role - arguably for the first time in his career - and puts even Leonardo DiCaprio's formidable work as J. Edgar Hoover to shame. Unless the buzz for The Descendants fades during the next month, Clooney will likely take home his second Oscar.
For better or for worse, Clooney's performance has no female counterpart in the Best Actress race, which lacks a clear leader. Michelle Williams' fitting tribute to Marilyn Monroe in My Week with Marilyn has earned her considerable accolades, but the film undermines her work with a disjointed script and lackluster visuals. Although in a just world, Tilda Swinton's heartbreaking performance in We Need to Talk About Kevin would take the top title, Viola Davis's dull but stoic work in The Help will likely grab the award if Williams fails to connect with Academy voters.
In fact, The Help has the potential to win two undeserved acting Oscars this year. Just as Sandra Bullock did two years ago in The Blind Side, The Help's Octavia Spencer has proven that playing to sassy stereotypes is a surefire way to land a spot on the Oscar ballot. Unless either co-star Jessica Chastain or The Descendants' Shailene Woodley quickly gains ground, Spencer will take the crown for Best Supporting Actress. On the male side, Christopher Plummer's work as an aging gay father in Beginners will go head-to-head with Albert Brooks's equally impressive take on a sadistic mobster in Drive. Since both men have been snubbed in the past, the Best Supporting Actor race is sure to bring a happier result than its relatively sparse female counterpart.
All in all, 2011 presented a vast panorama of phenomenal films, from Steven Spielberg's spellbinding War Horse to Terrence Malick's gloriously abstract The Tree of Life. And while the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences may cast its spotlight away from these spectacular movies, this year's ceremony will at least offer some surprise wins, startling speeches and dazzling outfits. What more could we ask for?
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