‘The help’s’ Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for best Atress and Best Supporting noms respectively
By Kam Williams
Don’t be deceived by ‘Hugo’s’ landing the most Oscar nominations, The Artist still remains the heavy favorite to win for Best Picture. The list of nominees doesn’t include much in the way of major surprises other than perhaps the conspicuous absence of Ryan Gosling (‘The Ides of March’ and ‘Drive’) and Kristen Wiig (‘Bridesmaids’) in the lead acting categories, Albert Brooks (‘Drive’) in the supporting, David Fincher (‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’) for Best Director, and ‘The Adventures of Tintin’ for Best Animated Feature.
Brad Pitt enjoys a slight early edge over George Clooney for Best Actor, and the same goes for perennial-nominee Meryl Streep over Viola Davis for Best Actress. But the odds can change, so watch for every studio to employ some subtle marketing strategies over the next few weeks to position their nominees as the most deserving.
As for the support roles, Golden Globe-winner Octavia Spencer might have a tough time repeating that feat against Janet McTeer, given the Academy’s history of preferring British actresses in that category. By comparison, Supporting Actor is totally up for grabs, since four of the entrants, Nick Nolte, Christopher Plummer, Max von Sydow and Kenneth Branagh, have all been nominated multiple times before, but never won. Thus all qualify for the proverbial “body of work” vote.
The 84th Academy Awards will air live on ABC, on Sunday, February 26th at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT, and will be hosted by Billy Crystal.
COMPLETE LIST OF ACADEMY AWARD NOMINEES (partial list)
Actor in a Leading Role
• Demián Bichir in “A Better Life”
• George Clooney in “The Descendants”
• Jean Dujardin in “The Artist”
• Gary Oldman in “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”
• Brad Pitt in “Moneyball”
Actor in a Supporting Role
• Kenneth Branagh in “My Week with Marilyn”
• Jonah Hill in “Moneyball”
• Nick Nolte in “Warrior”
• Christopher Plummer in “Beginners”
• Max von Sydow in “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close”
PHOTO: Viola Davis in “The Help”
Actress in a Leading Role
• Glenn Close in “Albert Nobbs”
• Viola Davis in “The Help”
• Rooney Mara in “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
• Meryl Streep in “The Iron Lady”
• Michelle Williams in “My Week with Marilyn”
Actress in a Supporting Role
• Bérénice Bejo in “The Artist”
• Jessica Chastain in “The Help”
• Melissa McCarthy in “Bridesmaids”
• Janet McTeer in “Albert Nobbs”
• Octavia Spencer in “The Help”
Animated Feature Film
• “A Cat in Paris “Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli
• “Chico & Rita “Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal
• “Kung Fu Panda 2” Jennifer Yuh Nelson
• “Puss in Boots” Chris Miller
• “Rango” Gore Verbinski
Documentary (Feature)
• “Hell and Back Again” Danfung Dennis and Mike Lerner
• “If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front” Marshall Curry and Sam Cullman
• “Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory” Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky
• “Pina” Wim Wenders and Gian-Piero Ringel
• “Undefeated” TJ Martin, Dan Lindsay and Richard Middlemas
Documentary (Short Subject)
• “The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement” Robin Fryday and Gail Dolgin
• “God Is the Bigger Elvis” Rebecca Cammisa and Julie Anderson
• “Incident in New Baghdad” James Spione
• “Saving Face” Daniel Junge and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy
• “The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom” Lucy Walker and Kira Carstensen
Foreign Language Film
• “Bullhead” (Belgium)
• “Footnote” (Israel)
• “In Darkness” (Poland)
• “Monsieur Lazhar” (Canada)
• “A Separation” (Iran)
Music (Original Song)
• “Man or Muppet” from “The Muppets” Music and Lyric by Bret McKenzie
• “Real in Rio”from “Rio” Music by Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown Lyric by Siedah Garrett
Best Picture
• “The Artist” Thomas Langmann, Producer
• “The Descendants” Jim Burke, Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, Producers
• “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” Scott Rudin, Producer
• “The Help” Brunson Green, Chris Columbus and Michael Barnathan, Producers
• “Hugo” Graham King and Martin Scorsese, Producers
• “Midnight in Paris” Letty Aronson and Stephen Tenenbaum, Producers
• “Moneyball” Michael De Luca, Rachael Horovitz and Brad Pitt, Producers
• “The Tree of Life” Nominees to be determined
• “War Horse” Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, Producers
Short Film (Animated)
• “Dimanche/Sunday” Patrick Doyon
• “The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore” William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg
• “La Luna” Enrico Casarosa
• “A Morning Stroll” Grant Orchard and Sue Goffe
• “Wild Life” Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby
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