Virgin stole my Oscars

We all know that yesterday (well, this morning if you live in the UK) was Oscar time. I, being the movie nerd I am sat up to watch it from one thirty. I set the recorder just in case I fell asleep. Okay, so I'm watching the Oscars Javier has won best supporting actor, the Coens have won best screenplay and I'm simply beaming. As the show goes on I type my summary article for Helium, that's dedication for you. Anyhoo, they're announcing the best cinematography (and Cameron Diaz can't pronounce it), I quickly write down that the expected winner is Roger Deakins and guess what happens. The TV says that the channel is off air. Damn you Virgin Media. I didn't get to see Daniel Day-Lewis or the Coens accept their Oscars. It’s not like Sky movies comes off air at 4 because, on Sky Movies Drama, The Departed was still on. Branson, my opinion of you isn’t getting any better.

Oscars Summary

The carpet's out, the stars made up and the winners pre-decided. That's right, the 80th Academy awards have finally come our way. We were unsure as to whether there would even be a ceremony; there was, and it was splendid. Each year, the ceremony gets bigger and this year was not exception.

Naturally, we open with a few jokes with our host, John Stewart. No topic was ignored he touched on the writer's strike, the election and the increasing darkness of the academy.

Achievement In Costume Design
Presented by Jennifer Garner the award had many impressive designers, the classic French work for Vie En La Rose, the period piece, Atonement. Alexandra Byrne won her first Oscar for Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Previously, Byrne had been nominated for Hamlet.

George Clooney gives us a short intro about notable moments in Oscar history showcasing a plethora of key moments. This is the first of many montages featured throughout the ceremony including a tribute to bad dreams (included solely as a joke of course).

Best Animated Feature
Anne Hathaway and Stave Carrel, naturally entertaining presented the award. It was the film everyone expected to win, Ratatouille by Brad Bird.

Achievement in Make-Up
And the award goes toNorbit, only joking. The Oscar was won for the amazing work put into La Vie En La Rose by Didier Lavergne and Jan Archibald. It took great effort to convincing turn Marion Cotillard into Edith Piaf.

Achievement of Visual Effects
The award went to Michael Fink, Bill Westenhofer, Ben Morris and Trevor Wood for the Golden Compass.

Achievement in Art Direction
Many impressive works were in the category, the grim and fantastical Sweeny Todd, the classic, Atonement and the magical Golden Compass. The Oscar went to Dante Ferretti (Art Direction); Francesca Lo Schiavo (Set Decoration) for Sweeny Todd

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
The first acting award of the ceremony this was one of the awards everyone thought they knew the winner would be. The predictions were correct and Javier Bardem won his Oscar for his role as the psychopathic and terrifying Anton Chigurh. Included in his speech were a few phrases in Spanish for his mother.

Best Live Action Short Film
Presented by Owen Wilson was one of the lesser awards. The Oscar goes to Le Mozart Des Pickpockets (The Mozart of Pickpockets) a tale about two crooks who take a young mute boy into their care.

Best Animated Short Film
The Oscar went to Peter and the Wolf by Suzie Templeton and Hugh Welchman.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
This is most certainly one of the more unsure awards. Many had their eye on Cat Blanchette for I'm Not There. As predicted by the BAFTAs Tilda Swinton won the ward for her role in George Clooney's Michael Clayton.

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
On of the awards that we weren't sure about the winner, the nominees all seemed to have an equal chance. The Coen Brothers took their first award for No Country For Old Men based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy.

Best Sound Editing
Karen Baker Landers and Per Hallberg took the award for best sound edition for the swift and cool, The Bourne Ultimatum

Achievement in Sound Mixing
Another sound award for the Bourne Ultimatum taken by Scott Millan, David Parker and Kirk Francis.

Best Actress in a Leading Role
This award was bit of a wildcard; the winner became less and less clear as time passed. Although the BAFTAs were right again, surprisingly, the award went to Marion Cotillard for her unrecognisable performance as Edith Piaf in La Vie En La Rose.

Achievement in Film Editing
Yet another award for the Bourne Ultimatum. Christopher Rouse won the award for achievement in film editing.

Best Foreign Language Film
The films within the foreign language category were more certainly not the most well-known foreign language films of the year. The award went to the Austrian film, The Counterfeiters set during World War Two.

Best Original Song
Although nominated for three of the five films with the best song category fail to win any awards for enchanted. The winners were for the song "Falling Slowly" in Once.

Achievement in Cinematography
There was a strong consensus that Roger Deakins would win the best cinematography for either The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford or No Country for Old Men. As they say, the best things come to those who wait and after 7 nominations Roger Deakins finally won the Oscar for No Country For Old Men.

Best Documentary Feature
For the dark documentary centred around an Afghan taxi driver beaten to death in U.S. military the award went to Alex Gibney and Eva Orner for Taxi to the Dark Side.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Guess. The award everyone was 99.99% sure about the winner. Shock, horror (!) Daniel Day Lewis wins his second Oscar for is powerful role as Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood.

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen
As time went on, people gained more and more faith in Juno, an arguably small film. Like Sidney Lumet said about actors there are also no small films and the award deserving went to Diablo Cody, writer of Juno.

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original Score)
The second academy award nomination for Dario Marianelli who won it for the grand score for Atonement.

Achievement in directing
The first directing team to win this coveted Oscar since 1961; the crowd goes wild as Joel and Ethan Coen received the award for No Country for Old Men.

Best motion picture of the year
The big one. A reward received by such films as In the Heat of the Night and The Godfather, the ultimate reward for any filmmaker. This was the fourth award of the evening for No Country For Old Men.

It was clearly No Country for Old Men's Night it received some of the most prestigious awards in the film industry. Not so lucky films were Atonement nominated for seven award and There Will Be Blood, nominated for eight awards. Each received one award.

Oh my Coen Brothers

Well I did it. I finally saw No Country For Old Men. It is a master piece and I would go so far as to say this it was effing awesome. Oh my gosh the lighting. Oh my gosh the sound. Oh my gosh the acting. Oh my gosh, that’s how it ended. Wow. I’m not too sure how to convey how great the film was in words. It is my intention to review it at some point, naturally, during the course of the film my little review points made into my head. I got home and put my white board to use. See below:
Roger Deakins is the king of cinematography. I just need to see Juno, There Will be Blood and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly to gauge what film, in my opinion, was the best picture of 2008. I know what you’re thinking-didn’t she write her Oscar predictions including best picture already? Damn right I did, but that is very easy to do without watching the films. I must say that watching No Country For Old Men has made it even harder to predict a winner. I don’t think I’ve given No Country… enough time so I will get back to it tomorrow. The sister want to use the computer.

Oscar? Who's Oscar?

Oscar predictions (I wrote this ages ago)

The Oscars are on their way so and despite worries there they may be no ceremony the prediction have begun. Like any year, a handful of films have dominated the nominations. No Country for Old Men, the Cohen Brothers' new masterpiece has been nominated for a staggering 8 awards along with Paul Thomas Anderson's violent tale, There Will Be Blood. Representing British cinema, Atonement is out win seven awards including best picture. Will Atonement be as successful as The Queen, we'll have to wait and see.

Performance by an actor in a leading role

Johnny Depp has always been one of the critics favourites and has now been nominated for his third Oscar. However, this year, the Oscar will probably go the Daniel Day-Lewis the recipient of one Oscar already. His performance as the ruthless business man, Daniel Plainview, in There Will Be Blood.

Performance by an actor in a supporting role

Javier Barden lost out on his first Oscar to Russell Crowe in 2000, but that will not be the case this year. It's no secret that his performance in No Country for Old men has impressed most it is most certainly his year.

Performance by an actress in a leading role
We always say that actors and actresses in comedy film fo not get the credit they deserve and many said that Ellen Page should be nominated for an Oscar for Juno but few thought it would actually happen. Unfortunately for Miss Page, the winner of the award look like it's going to be Cate Blanchett for her reprise of her role of Queen Elizabeth in Elizabeth: The Golden Age.

Performance by an actress in a supporting role
Young Saoirse Ronan conveyed a believable and moving performance as Briony Tallis in Atonement. The combination of her young age and acting ability that is beyond her years that should win her this Oscar.

Best animated feature film of the year

Ratatouille is a film that has impressed the critics. There is little doubt that this well crafted story of a rat in a kitchen will win the Oscar.

Achievement in art direction

Sarah Greenwood and Katie Spencer appear to be Joe Wrights go-to team for Art Direction. Everyone loves the aesthetics of a period drama and this is why the Oscar for Achievement in Art Direction shall go to Sarah Greenwood and Katie Spencer.

Achievement in directing

This is the award that seems to have the Coens' names all over it. They have really struck back with No Country for Old Men and it look like it will win one of the Oscars that Fargo did not.

Best documentary feature

Michael Moore may be the one of the first documentary makers that spring to mind but it is unlikely that he will get his hands in this Oscar. Charles Ferguson's depiction of the war in Iraq appears to be the frontrunner for Best Documentary Feature.

Best foreign language film of the year

Representing Austria, The Counterfeiters (Flscher, Die) illustrates the huge counterfeiting operation set up by the Nazi's during the war. It is more than likely that The Counterfeiters Will clench this Oscar.

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original Score)

Dario Marianelli's score for a Atonement is one of those scores that is perfect for the film in very way. As a freestanding piece and score alone Marianelli's composition is striking.

Best motion picture of the year

Ooo, the big one. No Country for Old Men and There Will be Blood are clearly the frontrunners. I honestly has no idea who will take this one.

Indeed