Looking for predictions for 2011: Who Will Win the Oscars in 2011? Nominations and Oscars Betting.
Trying to work out who will win the Oscars is a difficult pastime. However, it is possible to make some educated predictions. And, if you feel really confident, you could even make some money in your Academy Awards pool at your office.
Best Picture
Nominations: Avatar; The Blind Side; District 9; An Education; The Hurt Locker; Inglourious Basterds; Precious; A Serious Man; Up; Up In The Air.
Several of these films can probably be written off despite their undoubted quality. Precious is a great movie and should pick up some awards, but smaller indie-type films are rare winners of the big gong.
Tarantino has yet to win Best Picture, but even though the Academy loves Nazi-themed films, Inglourious Basterds doesn't quite carry the weight needed. Up is simply fantastic and is probably most deserving of the award, but animated films have yet to break that glass ceiling.
This is a contest between Iraq war drama, The Hurt Locker and 3D behemoth, Avatar. Three crucial factors point to the latter winning: It's an epic - always beloved by the Academy; it won at the Golden Globes; and it has achieved extraordinary record-breaking box office success.
Recommendation: Avatar.
Best Director
Nominations: Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker); James Cameron (Avatar); Lee Daniels (Precious); Jason Reitman (Up In The Air); Quentin Tarantion (Inglourious Basterds).
Seven of the last ten Best Director winners also saw their movie win Best Picture. That suggests that James Cameron, for Avatar, has to be the favourite.
However, the Academy is (unbelievably) yet to award this prize to a woman. Kathryn Bigelow has been a consistently fascinating filmmaker and The Hurt Locker fully deserves to win a major prize. This is a real toughie for your Oscar pool. Avatar will pick up a truck load of golden statues, but Bigelow may just get the nod here.
Recommendation: Kathryn Bigelow.
Long Shot Oscars Bet: Lee Daniels for the extraordinary Precious.
Best Actress
Nominations: Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side); Helen Mirren (The Last Station); Carey Mulligan (An Education); Gabourey Sidibe (Precious); Meryl Streep (Julie & Julia).
Meryl Streep has had more nominations than anyone in history, but her only Best Actress win came in 1982, so it could be 'her turn'. However, Julie and Julia, as sweet as it is, doesn't quite feel like it's going to win one of the majors.
Bullock has already won at the Globes (as did Streep) and her role as an adoptive parent of the Baltimore Ravens offensive lineman Michael Oher will certainly tug on the heartstrings. Her true challenger has to be Gabourey Sidibe for her amazing performance in Precious. Still, Bullock's rise from Miss Congeniality 2 to Oscar hopeful is perhaps too much for the Academy to resist and has to be your best Oscars bet here.
Recommendation: Sandra Bullock.
Best Actor
Nominations: Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart); George Clooney (Up In The Air); Colin Firth (A Single Man); Morgan Freeman (Invictus); Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker).
Many Brits will be praying for a Colin Firth win as he is the heartthrob of the nation, while Morgan Freeman's Invictus has obviously been timed deliberately in the hope of Oscar glory.
However, Jeff Bridges has been turning in great performances for years without a Best Actor Oscar to show for it. Playing Bad Blake, a country singer-songwriter, looks likely to net him the big one this year - and it would certainly be about time.
Recommendation: Jeff Bridges.
For more Oscar tips to help your Oscars betting, click below.
Daniel Trelfer - I'm a freelance writer and also work in television on and off. I'm looking forward to exploring a range of my interests at Suite 101, ...
