Anticipating the Academy Awards

Arizona Daily Wildcat

There are 24 categories which the Academy deems worthy of an award, including Best Adapted Screenplay, Original Screenplay, Art Direction, Cinematography, Costume Design, Documentary Short, Documentary Feature, Film Editing, Foreign Language Film, Makeup, Dramatic Musical Score, Comedy Musical Score, Original Song, Short Film Animated, Short Film Live Action, Sound, Sound Effects Editing and Visual Effects. However the big hype usually tends to be around the major six categories: Best Picture, Actor/Actress, Supporting Actor/Actress and Director.

This year the nominees for Best Picture are: As Good As It Gets, The Full Monty, Good Will Hunting, L.A. Confidential and Titanic. The Full Monty seems to be the underdog film that was not expected to be on the ballot - like Fargo and Babe in the past. This is the film that really deserves the Oscar, but it probably will not receive one; it's already received its recognition with a nomination. Usually, the best picture award goes to the film that most represents the image of the idealized film industry, aka Hollywood. This film most likely encompasses something fresh, technologically superior, or acts as a stepping stone to a different level of filmmaking. Such were the cases in the past with films like Forrest Gump, Braveheart, Schindler's List and the English Patient, meaning the film most likely to win this year is Titanic.

Best Actor and Actress should go to the stars whose talent and energy on the screen could not have been duplicated by any other star. Most people seem to be disappointed that Leonardo DiCaprio was not nominated in this category for his role in Titanic. Although it's hard to doubt his acting abilities, one has to ask the question, "Would the movie be different if his role was replaced by another pretty-faced actor?" Probably not.

This year's Best Actor nominees are: Matt Damon for Good Will Hunting, Robert Duvall for The Apostle; Peter Fonda for Ulee's Gold; Dustin Hoffman for Wag the Dog, and Jack Nicholson for As Good As It Gets. Bets should be on Robert Duvall, because his performance was genuine and well developed. He brought a difficult, selfish, psychologically disturbed character to life and made him oddly likable. Without Duvall, the film would not have been the same. Nicholson played himself, Hoffman has had his share of awards, Fonda has lost his touch, and Damon still has many chances in the future to "prove himself."

For Best Actress, the nominees are: Helena Bonham Carter for The Wings of Dove; Julie Christie for Afterglow; Judi Dench for (Her Majesty) Mrs. Brown; Helen Hunt for As Good As It Gets; and Kate Winslet for Titanic. Winslet can be ruled out for the same reason as DiCaprio. However, Helen Hunt has grown and matured as an actress from her series Mad About You to her efforts in Twister. So she should win it for her talents in As Good As It Gets.

In the category of Best Director, it's usually a safe bet that whatever film gets Best Picture will receive Best Director as well. At least, that has been the case for past Academy Awards. Steven Spielberg received one for Schindler's List, Mel Gibson for Braveheart, Robert Zemeckis for Forrest Gump, and Anthony Minghella for English Patient. If the pattern holds, James Cameron will receive this award for his work on Titanic.

As we all wait in anticipation for each winner to be announced, however, remember that the movies are not about who wins and who loses - they're about stepping out of reality for several hours and enjoying that journey through a different world. The awards' ceremony is just one way of thanking the people who help us do that.