Jaguar – It’s Good to Be Bad

I already shared this in Twitter yesterday but I just love it, so here it is again. It takes a Brit to be bad.

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The Best of the Best – Future Husbands

Ok, even that heading made me laugh. But yeah, because nice looking fellas with something extra are nice things to exist, here we go. I’ll introduce my Top-10 plus of those male actors who have at some point of my life made their ways to my daydreams and of whom I know way too much when thinking of that I’ve never met them. Let’s open the doors:

Sorry, had to start with that one. But even though I admire Mr. Mortensen A LOT, it’s Aragorn who made me all tingling. And like always with my Best of the Best lists, I have to mention few out of actual Top-10.

I tried to consider my whole life. Like many have loved Jared Leto in My So Called Life or Jonathan Taylor Thomas of Home Improvement but those were kinda no ones to me. I did like Keanu Reeves but that was more because he was this rocker dude in Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure. It looks like I’ve been a fan of musicians more than fan of actors. And I wanted to keep this strictly in acting zone. Although one actor/musician I have to mention now is Justin Timberlake whom I’m actually listening right now to set the mood right for writing this post. But I got into him through his music, so I guess he doesn’t count.

Luke Perry from Beverly Hills 90210 was the first one that I remember from telly. Bad boys. Though I can’t remember if he was like that in real life, so maybe that was too more about the character… And on film, I loved Rob Lowe in St. Elmo’s Fire; who doesn’t love a bad boy with saxophone? And I did watch all the other movies of his after seeing that film (come to think of it, I was quite a fan of Emilio Estevez too after seeing Young Guns II; that one I watched because Bon Jovi was my ultimate favourite band back then). And now because that reminded of me about that, I want to post this video of Blaze of Glory by Jon Bon Jovi who made the soundtrack to that film. I watched that movie like three times a week at one point when I was 11 or 12… Oooh (now I’m all misty eyed here):

I liked Kiefer Sutherland too. I remember being pissed because Julia Roberts dumped him. Lol. Back to the list I did collect before starting to write.

Skeet Ulrich in Scream was hothothot. Apparently I’ve always had have a thing to serial killers… And when they cast Elijah Wood as Frodo I was over the moon, he was the cutest thing. Still is (I’m not sure if he ages at all?). Daniel Radcliffe is also one of those guitar playing actors I like a little bit more. Though he’s really young. Christian Bale is always hot and quite scary too. I’m not sure I’d like to meet him in real world. Ryan Gosling. Michael Fassbender (I’m sure he’ll get to my top-10 at some point). And I’ve always liked Jeremy Irons (especially after seeing version of Lolita where he plays Humbert Humbert) but he’s my dad’s age, so… Another older man that I like is Alan Rickman. Of course. Who doesn’t like him? I so understand this assistant of his character’s in Love Actually.

I’ve never getting to actual Top-10 but I can’t leave these three without mention. First, James Franco, he would be number 11. I loved and totally admired him before he ruined the Oscars the other year. Shame on him! I still admire him though. Plus he’s weird, I’m still following him in Twitter and Facebook. I don’t get how he has time for everything he’s doing… And then the two who every other woman interested in film loves at the moment; Tom Hiddleston and Mr. I’m the sexiest in the world Benedict Cumberbatch. Because of their talent, I’ve already decided to move to England instead of Canada that I was planning before, they just make so much better films and television in UK. And they’re both charismatic, well-educated men who care about what is happening around them. Kind of gives me hope of  someday maybe finding a man with brains, ambition, style and sense of humour.Thanks for that to those guys.

10) EDWARD FURLONG

Terminator 2. I loved (still do) Guns n’ Roses, so of course I needed to see T2. It was also really hyped film back then (James Cameron was the man already 23 years ago) and it had made Edward Furlong a heart throb of the moment. Unfortunately only for a moment as the following picture shows. That’s sad.

9) ORLANDO BLOOM

Unfortunately he’s not very good actor (just my opinion) but he did have the looks. Though I just watched some footage of making of Hobbit 2 and he doesn’t seem that brainy either… But if you’ve ever seen him or his wax figure, you know that he’s suitably proportioned (that sounded really horrible, sorry). Plus very nice to look at.

8) NIKOLAJ COSTER-WALDAU

“Jaime Lannister” is the newest edition to my “future husbands”. Although he seems to be happily married and for some weird reason that is the line where my daydreaming goes. But because of him, I already went to Copenhagen to check if the men in there are that good-looking. They are.

7) JOSHUA JACKSON

It’s a bit hard to decide if this is due to character of Pacey Witter in Dawson’s Creek (who was also in my list of best TV characters) or Joshua himself. But I did read a lot about him back in the years of Dawson’s Creek. And he did end up catching this hottie Diana Krüger.

And I have still Fringe to watch. Bet he’s good in that too, there’s something boyishly charismatic about him. At least he hasn’t really changed in these years since Pacey.

6) JONATHAN RHYS MEYERS

He has been my dirty dreams no. 1 for so long. I don’t even remember where it all began. Maybe Match Point? Or Bend It Like Beckham? I can’t remember. But I like men to take their ladies. Properly.

5) ROBERT DOWNEY JR.

I first liked him in Only You. That’s 20 years ago. That man just gets better. Have you seen this:

4) MILO VENTIMIGLIA

I fell in love with him when he played Jess in Gilmore Girls (my favourite show of all time). And then he was in Heroes! That was so great surprise. I’ve even watched Cursed because of him. And they make these weird videos with his friends… He seems way too healthy for me but who cares, lovely guy! And looks still good.

3) JEREMY RENNER

It was so hard to decide between Jeremy and the number two. But because number two, well, is better actor I chose him (horrible). All men in top four are really dear to me. I’ve loved them either A LOT or for A LONG time. I got into Renner-wagon sometime between Hurt Locker and The Avengers I guess… I did love him in S.W.A.T. already but only realised that it’s the same guy about two years ago. In real life I had way too young guys in my life and then suddenly there’s this manly street fighter kinda guy with hot bod, musical talents and this slightly bad guy attitude. Mmmm…. Yep. He was my favourite for a loooooong time.

2) LEONARDO DICAPRIO

I was 17 when Titanic came out. You can guess the rest. I’ve seen most of his films. And he’s still hot. And he only tweets about important stuff like environment. Plus he was really funny in The Wolf of Wall Street (review still coming up). Give him the Oscar already!

1) JAKE GYLLENHAAL

From Donnie Darko to Prisoners. He’s always good. He seems smart, he has gone to Columbia (I even have this dream of meeting him there by accident; that’s my dream school too), Maggie Gyllenhaal is his sister, he has those amazing eyes and Prince of Persia body. He seems a bit arrogant but very very funny at the same time. He might not have this English charm but something there is that made me say in the screening of Prisoners: “Oh, how I missed you.”

Who do you dream of? For more men of my liking, check my Pinterest. 

12 Years a Slave review

12 Years a Slave (2013)

Directed by Steve McQueen

Written by John Ridley (Story by Solomon Northup)

Starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Lupita Nyong’o, Sarah Paulson, Paul Dano, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Giamatti & Brad Pitt

Gosh, I’ve been away again. I finally got to see 12Years a Slave that I’ve been waiting to hit the Finnish cinemas for ages (or so it feels). And it was the best new film since Drive (that’s 1,5 years)! I do admit, I have enjoyed some films more than this but the way Steve McQueen handles the subject is spectacular. In hands of incapable director this one could’ve been a mess or at least overly dramatised. Now it’s almost perfect.

The story itself is interesting, brutal and honest in the way that it is sometimes hard to watch. I did close my eyes at least in one scene. And I felt bad, well, almost through whole film. Or not actually bad, more like, embarrassed. Because, you know, we still tend to act that way. And that’s the best side of this film. It makes you think. Me and my friend ended up talking about our own behaviour towards foreign people, people with different culture and even people with different skin colour. It is no wonder if refugees or other people from different cultures that are minority act out poorly when that is exactly what the major population is expecting them to do. Like in Finland, it’s really hard to get a job if you don’t speak Finnish and then what choices do you have other than get the money from the government (when Finnish people complain that you’re here only for free living), steal or beg. I thought about Solomon Northup beforehand and wondered why he just didn’t leave. Well, I know now why.

When it comes to film making, 12 Years a Slave is beautifully shot; eg. there are some extra lovely shots of the nature of deep south that are so beautiful yet same time so creepy when compared to the horrors happening in the scene. Everyone of the actors and actresses are making their best job. I truly believe Lupita Nyong´o deserves her Oscar and Fassbender would too. His portrait of this sadistic character is unbelievably human. None of the white characters of the film are without soul (Sarah Paulson is also fantastic). You kind of understand where their behaviour arise from. And same time you just can’t understand how anyone can do that to another person. I liked a lot of Benedict Cumberbatch’s character (although he was not in his best) especially because his character made me think how I would have acted at those circumstances. I’d like to believe I’d been braver. Hopefully I’ll never come across to that kind of situation.

The only thing that was a bit too much in the film is, surprisingly, music. It’s too much. And I love Hans Zimmer and his compositions usually but because the story of Solomon is told quite a subtle way, the music is too dramatic. It does work in some of the scenes but not in all. McQueen is basically stating “this happened” but Zimmer is building up much more and for this once it doesn’t work. But that’s my only complaint.

If they don’t give the Best Picture Oscar to this film, it’ll be injustice. Gravity is amazing, I’ve never seen anything like it and I’m sure American Hustle is a riot with great actors but 12 Years a Slave is a film that has a point to make. It should be shown to everyone, so we could, as human beings, think how we could start treating each other as equals.

Alphabetic Movie Meme

It’s Sunday and I have nothing mandatory to do, so let’s list some movie related things for a change.

I ran into this at Elina’s Films and Coke blog that I enjoy to read and I just need to answer those questions myself. You can find the original Alphabetic Movie Meme at The Drama Llama blog of Katy’s. I think I need to follow her too from now on. Btw, I just realised, everyone is introducing themselves by their first names. So, hi, I’m Satu.

Anticipating Movie of 2014

Interstellar. Well, Christopher Nolan. Do I need to say more?

Book Adaptation I’d Like to See

I’d like to see live action version of Dragons of Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. The series were one of my favourites when I was a teenager and I remember trying to cast a movie based on the first novel. There is an animated feature and a lot of Dungeons & Dragons stuff or something like it already existing but I’d like to see a proper film now when there actually are great fantasy films existing.

Celebrity I’d Most Like to Meet

This is hard… I’d like to choose someone that’s not too intimidating and by that I mean, no one too charming because it would be hard not to blush all the time (that leaves out Clooney, Hiddleston, Law, Downey Jr. etc.). So, I’m gonna go with Mila Kunis. She would probably be a blast to hang out with and wouldn’t mind to have a beer or two at local sports bar.

Dream Director/Actor Pairing

David Fincher and Christian Bale. That would be some chillingly dark stuff. 

Essential Classic Film

I need to agree with Elina here and choose Gone with the Wind. I’ve seen the film at least ten times if not more and I love it. Scarlett is my ultimate heroine. Sometimes you just need to sacrifice things for the greater good. Although it would be better to understand a bit earlier what a blind cow you’re being.

Watching that trailer made me want to watch that again. I love that film!

Favourite Film Franchise

Lord of the Rings is the reason why I want to pursue a career in the film industry.

Genre I Watch the Most

Skeleton in my closet; I watch romantic comedies. I love them. I mean the ones that are actually good. That’s probably 10 films or so. But I still watch them, even the really bad ones.

Hidden Gem

In America. There are more of them, actually a lot of them but this one was the one that came to my mind instantly. It’s kind of funny that it’s “hidden gem” because it did get three Oscar nominations back in 2002. It is wonderfully written and acted. A real tearjerker but the one that leaves you uplifted anyway. I truly recommend it.

Important Moment in My Film Life

(includes a minor spoiler in case you haven’t seen Return of the King)

This is not really important to my life but it’s the most memorable moment that I’ve had within the movies. I went to see Return of the King second time on a Christmas Day and the cinema was full. All of those people who attended were actually there to see the film, not to chat or having a snack. And at that moment when Aragorn and company are at the Black Gates and Sauron speaks to Aragorn, the big movie hall was entirely silent, you couldn’t even hear people breathe. And when Aragorn whispers “for Frodo”, it was like sudden relief and people started to sob at the same time, you could hear everyone inhaling loudly. It was the best movie moment ever:

Just the Right for a Rainy-Day

Legally Blonde. I think this one is still the best role of Reese Witherspoon and the movie gives you such a push, like you could achieve anything. This is my “theme movie” like Ally McBeal had a theme song in the series.

Kiddie Movie I still Shamelessly Enjoy

To me couple of first Harry Potters are actually kiddie movies and all those great animated features are for both, adults and kids alike. But because those great Disney animations are counted as kids’ films, I’ll go with Lion King as well. It’s superb.

Location I’d Most Like to Visit

Again, I need to steal. I also want to go to Hogwarts. There is no place like it.

Marathon I Watched

I don’t believe I’ve watched any movies in a row. I have, of course, watched six films in a day but they didn’t have anything in common. Well, the best I can say is that I watched the first two parts of Lord of the Rings trilogy when I was spending the night at the cinema to get the ticket to the midnight screening of the third one.

Netflix Movie I Actually Watched

Let’s see if I’ve watched any of them. I usually only watch television series on Netflix… Yay, I found one! Chalet Girl. I’m quite a fan girl of Ed Westwick (or probably more like a fan girl of Jack Bass) and I wanted to see that. It was ok. I gave it 2,5 stars or five (that’s good for romantic comedy).

One Movie I Saw in Theatres More Than Once

The best I’ve done is with the first part of Lord of the Rings; The Fellowship of the Ring. I’ve seen it seven times in the theatre. I told you, that trilogy changed my career plans.

Preferred Place to Watch a Movie

Obviously in a cinema. There is no other answer except if you’re afraid of other people.

Quote that Inspires Me

“He save me in every way a person can be saved.”  -Rose from Titanic

I like the idea that a random meeting of another person can thoroughly change your life. Yes, in Titanic huge things happens, emotionally and around, but in the end, this quote is about it that a person needs to live a life that he/she finds fulfilling and never mind what others think what he/she should do.

Remakes – Friend or Foe?

Usually foe but it is also a good thing to introduce some classics to new audience in a form of a remake and perhaps they will end up watching the original one that is usually superior to the remake.

Snack I Enjoy Most

I’m not a fan of people eating in cinemas. I tolerate it, if they keep the noise in minimum. But I do get snacks when watching some action-adventure flicks like Pirates of the Caribbean or Marvel movies. My favourite is this candy called Missä X. They’re Finnish marmalade (I think?) with this sour sprinkling… Kind a hard to explain but here’s a picture:

Thrilling Movie that Blows My Mind

Argo. It was total “edge-of-your-seat” ride from the beginning until the end.

Unapologetic Fan person for

This varies, I get overly excited about different persons from time to time but if I’d needed to pick one, I’d guess it would be Jake Gyllenhaal. I just love him. He can even do really lousy films but it’s ok.

Very Excited for Award Show Season?

Well, check some other posts in this blog and guess.

Wish I Never Watched

Shallow Hal. I’m still offended by that film.  I truly hate it.

XXX Movie I First Watched at Young Age

I saw this film when I was about six or seven. My father was renovating my room upstairs quite late at the evening and I was alone in the living/bedroom and I think he didn’t know I was awake watching this film:

Btw, you can find the entire film on YouTube. I wouldn’t recommend except if you like bad horror movies.

Your Latest Movie Related Obsession

Benedict Cumberbatch. I’m a bit sorry that I got hooked on him as well like hundreds of thousands of other women around the world. But what can you do, he is the hottest star in Hollywood, at least according to Critics’ Choice Awards.

ZZZ-Catchers

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. I really had to fight with myself to stay awake. This is a pity because the franchise began really promising way, I love the first part and the second is also hilarious. I’m sorry they are still continuing to make them.

Oscar nominations 2014 and how did I do?

I did bad. I got only 71% correct but then again, there were quite a lot surprises. And that’s why I don’t feel too bad. I actually thought the nominations were better than I predicted. For example, I love Christian Bale and it’s great that he was nominated (especially because he took Tom Hanks’ place from Captain Phillips that was to me only a mediocre film). Same goes for Alexander Payne, who is my favourite director and who also directed my favourite film of the last year.

Let’s go through all of the categories:

Picture

12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
Her
Gravity
Inside Llewyn Davis
The Wolf of Wall Street
Nebraska
Captain Phillips
Saving Mr Banks
Dallas Buyers Club

Philomena was the one that I did not predict. I did have it on my list and I finally diched it in favor of Saving Mr. Banks. I shouldn’t have. But I’m glad it got the nod. I like British films. And Judi Dench.

Director

Gravity – Alfonso Cuarón
12 Years a Slave – Steve McQueen
The Wolf of Wall Street – Martin Scorsese
American Hustle – David O. Russell
Captain Phillips – Paul Greengrass

Again, Alexander Payne, who was the one that was nominated, was sixth on my list. And again, I’m not complaining, I loved Nebraska.

Best Actress in Leading Role

Cate Blanchett – Blue Jasmine
Judi Dench – Philomena
Sandra Bullock – Gravity
Emma Thompson – Saving Mr. Banks
Amy Adams – American Hustle

This one does make me a bit sad. Meryl Streep, again? Really? I love the lady but it’s becoming a bit boring, don’t you think?

Best Actor in Leading Role

Bruce Dern – Nebraska
Chiwetel Ejiofor – 12 Years a Slave
Oscar Isaac – Inside Llewyn Davis
Matthew McConaughey – Dallas Buyers Club
Leonardo DiCaprio – The Wolf of Wall Street

Here, I did a mistake. I was supposed to pick Tom Hanks, like I did in Gold Derby but instead there were Isaac. In the end it didn’t matter because neither was nominated but Christian Bale of American Hustle was. And I like that!

Actress in Supporting Role

Lupita Nyong’o – 12 Years a Slave
June Squibb – Nebraska
Julia Roberts – August: Osage County
Jennifer Lawrence – American Hustle
Oprah Winfrey – The Butler

Again, yay! I picked Oprah because she’s Oprah but I hoped she wouldn’t get nominated and she didn’t! Instead the Academy chose Sally Hawkins of Blue Jasmine. And she definitely deserves the recognition. Good for her!

Actor in Suppoerting Role

Michael Fassbender – 12 Years a Slave
Jared Leto – Dallas Buyers Club
Bradley Cooper – American Hustle
Daniel Bruhl – Rush
Barkhad Abdi – Captain Phillips

This one is again bit sad but not so much because I like Jonah Hill in The Wolf of Wall Street (review coming up) and it was nice to see him getting the nod. 

Adapted Screenplay

12 Years a Slave
Before Midnight
Captain Phillips
Philomena
The Wolf of Wall Street

100% right! But that was the only category.

Original Screenplay

American Hustle
Blue Jasmine
Her
Inside Llewyn Davis
Nebraska

Can’t complain. I think Dallas Buyers Club earns all the attention it is getting even though I haven’t seen it yet.

Best Cinematography

12 Years a Slave
Prisoners
Inside Llewyn Davis
Gravity
Captain Phillips

I made a change to this one in a last minute. I changed Nebraska, that did get the nod, to Captain Phillips. Mistake! And I’m quite surprised the Academy picked The Grandmaster instead of 12 Years especially when they did not choose it in Foreign Language Film category… But hurray for Roger Deakins for Prisoners!

Production Design

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
The Great Gatsby
Gravity
12 Years a Slave
American Hustle

No love for The Hobbit in this category but I guess Her does have a nice production design. I’ll be seeing that in three weeks.

Editing

American Hustle
Gravity
12 Years a Slave
The Wolf of Wall Street
Captain Phillips

I picked Wolf because Thelma Schoonmaker is very widely known and appreciated and you need to get a nod in Editing if you want to win the best pic. Dallas Buyers Club still has that option.

Best Costume Design

Saving Mr. Banks
The Great Gatsby
The Invisible Woman
12 Years a Slave
American Hustle

There was no love for Saving Mr. Banks. Instead they chose The Grandmaster. I don’t know what to think of that. It does look good in that pic, doesn’t it?

Best Hair & Make-up

American Hustle
Dallas Buyers Club
The Great Gatsby

This is the “what the f*** category. The Lone Ranger (really?!) and Jackass: Bad Granpa got the nominations. I don’t want to comment any more. Hopefully Dallas will win.

Best Score

12 Years a Slave – Hans Zimmer
All Is Lost – Alex Ebert
Gravity – Steven Price
Saving Mr. Banks – Thomas Newman
The Book Thief – John Wiliams

Here again I made a last minute change. All Is Lost replaced Her. Mistake again! (I really should not make any last minute changes…) But that really bums me out that Zimmer didn’t get recognition. He deserves it. But then again, I haven’t heard Desplat’s Philomena score, I usually like his stuff too.

Best Song

Frozen – Let It Go (Idina Menzel)
Mandela: A Long Walk to Freedom – Ordinary Love (U2)
The Great Gatsby – Young and Beautiful (Lana Del Ray)
Short Term 12 – So You Know What’s It Like (Keith Stanfield)
Despicable Me 2 – Happy (Pharrell Williams)

Alone Not Yet Alone? Who has heard of that? No one, apparently. If you want to know something, here’s an article about it in Hitfix including the song itself. The Moon Song from Her was my sixth option. (I tend to leave out the right ones, at least it looks like it, doesn’t it?)

Best Sound Mixing

Gravity
Captain Phillips
Rush
All Is Lost
Inside Llewyn Davis

It’s sad that they left out Rush, it was a very good film, technically too. But I’m glad they picked The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, I enjoyed it. I have no opinion of Lone Survivor.

Best Sound Editing

Gravity
Captain Phillips
Rush
Pacific Rim
12 Years a Slave

This is the category that was my biggest failure this year. Only two out of five. I did have All Is Lost at my list before narrowing it to five and I should’ve guess that Lone Survivor will get some technical recognition. And well, I’m just glad that The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug got any nominations.

Best Visual Effects

Gravity
Elysium
Pacific Rim
The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug
Iron Man 3

I haven’t seen The Lone Ranger but I very much doubt it has better visual effects than Pacific Rim. Does it? And Star Trek Into Darkness I had sixth on my list, just dropped it in favor of Elysium…

Foreign Film

The Great Beauty (Italy)
The Hunt (Denmark)
The Broken Circle Breakdown (Belgium)
The Grandmaster (Hong Kong)
Omar (Palestine)

I don’t get how you (read: the Academy) nominate one film in two different categories but not in the one that it should be nominated. Maybe The Missing Picture (Cambodia) is actually better but it’s still weird to me.

Best Documentary Feature

20 Feet From Stardom
The Act of Killing
The Square
Blackfish
Stories We Tell

In this category I always make wrong predictions but then again, it is really hard to understand the minds of the Academy. They didn’t choose two of the most talked about documentaries, instead they chose two that no one has heard of: Cutie and the Boxer and Dirty Wars. (I’m a bit angry when it comes to this category.)

Animated Feature

The Croods
Despicable Me 2
Frozen
Monsters University
The Wind Rises

I got Monsters wrong but I’m glad about it, Ernest & Celestine is the cutest animation. Well-deserved nod.

Best Animated Short

Get a Horse
Room on the Broom
Mr. Hublot
The Missing Scarf
Feral

I did surprisingly well because I have only seen Get a Horse. The one that I didn’t predict is Possessions.

Documentary Short

The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life
Slomo
Facing Fear
Cavedigger
Karama Has No Walls

Again, surprisingly well done. The only one that I left out is Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall.

Live Action Short

The Voorman Problem
Tiger Boy
Dva (Two)
Kush
Aquel No Era Jo (That Wasn’t Me)

And the last one went sadly too. But I don’t mind because a Finnish short film, Pitääkö Mun Kaikki Hoitaa? (Do I Have to Take Care of Everything?), got a nomination! That is just fantastic! The production company behind it, Tuffi Films, is run by women and they already had one short film awarded at Sundance last year, I wrote about it last March during Tampere International Film Festival. This kind of recognition gives hope to us all dreaming of film career up here in north. Two other that I didn’t guess were Avant Que De Tout Perdre (Just Before Losing Everything) and Helium.

Short trailer of Pitääkö Mun Kaikki Hoitaa?:

What do you think of the nominations? Were they correct? Did someone get snubbed? How did you do with the predictions? And if you want to see the nominations the way it is easier to read, go to Oscars.com.

The Oscar Predictions 2014 – Shorts, Frozen and Documentary

Ok, Animated Feature for those of you who like other contenders better. I want Frozen to win. Anyhoo, here are my last predictions explained:

Best Animated Feature

Frozen
Wind Rises
The Croods
Despicable Me 2
Monsters University

These are in order of likehood of winning. I believe Frozen will get the statue. It’s a comeback story of Disney, with great songs and nice story and couple of fierce female leads. Plus it’s making big bucks at the box office; at the moment it’s collected $712,680,546 worldwide. Not bad. Only upset could be Miayazaki’s Wind Rises because it is said that it’s his last work. The other three are there only because Gold Derby tells you to pick five. I’m not sure the Academy will actually pick five or if they will just pick three.

Best Documentary Feature

20 Feet From Stardom
The Act of Killing
The Square
Life According to Sam
Blackfish
Stories We Tell
Tim’s Vermeer

These are not in particular order. I will probably end up ditching Tim’s Vermeer and Life According to Sam tonight after revaluading all of the contenders but I want to give myself a bit more time because this is one of those categories you can’t be sure what they will pick and also one of those that might make you the owner of $1,000 gift card. I believe The Act of Killing will win. But Sarah Polley’s Stories We Tell has also been succesful around the world and Blackfish has gained a lot of attention. Let’s see.

Best Animated Short

Get a Horse
Room on the Broom
Mr. Hublot
The Missing Scarf
Feral
Subconsious Password

I have seen only the first one, it was showed before the screening of Frozen and I really liked it. It was a mix-up with the classic Disney and today’s world of excellent 3D. Room on the Broom looks fab and it’s voiced by famous British actors, so I believe it’s good. If you want to check trailer for all of the short-listed contenders, visit Rope of Silicon. Mr. Hublot looked also great and it has nice 8.0 grade at IMDb. The Missing Scarf has won some awards at the festival circuit and I think I’ll choose Feral instead of Subconsious Password just because I like the look of it more. But I think Disney will win this one.

Best Documentary Short

The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life
Slomo
Facing Fear
Cavedigger
Karama Has No Walls
Jujitsu-ing Reality

Same thing as with the list above, I will left out the last one on this list but I wanted to show it to you anyway. I basically picked these according to the subject matters. The first one sounds like a winner to me and to the most of the Top24 Users of Gold Derby too. Here are introductions to all of the films by Anne Thompson of Indiewire. Here’s the whole documentary of The Lady in Number 6:

Best Live Action Short

The Voorman Problem
Tiger Boy
Dva (Two)
Kush
Throat Song
Aquel No Era Jo (That Wasn’t Me)
Do I Have to Take Care of Everything

Well, The Voorman Problem seems like a winner in this category. A short film with Martin Freeman (who’s hot out of third season of beloved BBC’s Sherlock and also can be seen in The Hobbit trology) and a BAFTA nomination from last year. Tiger Boy and Dva (Two) has quite equal support among the people predicting this category. I especially like the story of the latter. Kush and Throat Song are also quite a tie. The first one is inspired by a true story and seems like the one that the Academy would like. The latter won Genie that is a Canada’s answer to the Oscars. Aquel No Era Jo got the Goya award equivalent to the Oscar in Spain. I have hard time deciding between it and Throat Song. And I just included Do I Have to Take Care of Everything because it’s made in Finland. Here’s some thoughts of this category at Film School Rejects and a trailer for The Voorman Problem:

That’s it. Tomorrow is THE day. Last year I was seventh amongs the a few thousand participants in Gold Derby. Tomorrow I’ll know how it went this year. Check the final predictions at Oscar Predictions 2014. I’ll be updating it shortly.

 

 

The Oscar Predictions 2014 – Audios

Here we go. The last before the last one. Unfortunately I’m writing this at school and I don’t have my notes (a word document) with me, so I’m gonna swing it. I do have Gold Derby where I can check the ones that I’m predicting at the moment, but not the ones that I still have bubbling under.

 

Best Score

12 Years a Slave – Hans Zimmer
Her – Arcade Fire
Gravity – Steven Price
Saving Mr. Banks – Thomas Newman
The Book Thief – John Wiliams
All Is Lost – Alex Ebert
Captain Phillips – Henry Jackman
Frozen – Robert Lopez & Kristen Anderson-Lopez

The first five ones are the ones that I’m predicting at the moment. The one on the top to win. I might be a bit biased because Hans Zimmer happens to be my favourite composer. I hope the Academy will go with the quirkiness of Arcade Fire like they’ve gone with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (The Social Network) but then again that seems to be the only example of that. The composer branch has always been notoriously biased, they seem to choose the same composers from year to year and then perhaps letting one “new one” in. This year it’s probably Steven Price, who, I just noticed, also composed Attack the Block that had great soundtrack (and is a surprisingly good film). Ok, now I like him more. John Williams is John Williams, the man who’s been nominated for staggering 48 times for the Oscar and won five times. Alex Ebert just won the Golden Globe so I don’t know what to think of that. Henry Jackman has gotten a lot of praise for his work in Captain Phillips, but to me it sounded like Zimmer’s work, especially in the end it was so much like Inception’s Time that it was bothering. So I’m not impressed. And Frozen’s soundtrack is lovely. I’m listening it right now. And have been so many times since I saw the film.

Best Song

Frozen – Let It Go (Idina Menzel)
Mandela: A Long Walk to Freedom – Ordinary Love (U2)
The Great Gatsby – Young and Beautiful (Lana Del Ray)
Her – The Moon Song (Karen O)
Short Term 12 – So You Know What’s It Like (Keith Stanfield)
Despicable Me 2 – Happy (Pharrell Williams)
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Coldplay)
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (Ed Sheeran)
12 Years a Slave – My Lord Sunshine (David Hughey and Roosevelt Credit)

I’m not able to be objective with this category. I detest U2 AND Coldplay. A lot. Both bands makes the shivers to go through my body. Disgusting. But I’m still thinking that the first one at least will score the nomination but I so much hope that it will not win (shame on you Hollywood Foreign Press for choosing it instead of Let It Go!). I’m not sure there will be five contenders in this category. I bet Menzel, whom I hope they will bring to the actual gala, she’s amazing, U2 and Keith Stanfield will get the noms. And maybe Lana Del Ray. To me that song is nothing special and I’m not that in to Del Ray now when my heart is healed again. Happy is playing a lot in Finnish radios too. And I like I See Fire but I doubt the Academy will like it as much. But all in all I hope they will bring all the acts to the stage this year, it would be interesting. I’ve posted Let It Go so many times already to this blog, that I’ll go with the other favourite of mine this time:

Best Sound Mixing

Gravity
Captain Phillips
Rush
All Is Lost
Inside Llewyn Davis
12 Years a Slave

At the moment I’m leaving 12 Years a Slave out but I might change my mind before Thursday morning. Gravity obviously is my favourite for win. The soundwork is impeccable in it. The silence especially. Rush also is very good, all that screeching of tires, rain falling etc. Captain Phillips works too but I got to admit that I don’t understand a lot of sound department work but I’m always fascinated by those making-offs where they’re explaining what they are doing. And apparently all the things happening at sea are in need of special sound work and I’m betting on that now. Plus one film with musical element. But to be honest, this is basically guessing from my part. In the following clip pay attention to great soundtrack too:

Best Sound Editing

Gravity
Captain Phillips
Rush
All Is Lost
Pacific Rim
12 Years a Slave

Same list except that I’ve changed Inside Llewyn Davis to Pacific Rim. I’m not sure it should be that identical. Maybe not? I have to dig into these before Thursday. Cinema Audio Society have just released their nominations but I haven’t had time to check them yet, so there’s still a change I’ll change my predictions in this category. At least Lone Survivor (the box-office champ of the weekend) is getting attention. And then again, CAS is not the best predicting the Oscars. We’ll see.

Tomorrow it’s turn for Animated Feature (that I’ve actually have already finished predicting; here), Documentary and Shorts. That’s it, I guess. Oh, btw, ever-hot Chris Hemsworth is announcing the nominations. Here’s the link to watch the nominations announcement on 5.30 Thursday morning Pacific time (that’s 3.30pm in Finland).

Until tomorrow!