My response to the Oscar Nominations for the 2013 Oscars for films in 2012

The Oscar nominations for films in 2012, were announced today.  Mike and I have seen five of the films nominated for Best Picture, because we read good reviews about them by Roger Ebert at www.RogerEbert.com.  “Lincoln” is Mike’s favorite movie of last year, and I loved Les Miserables. 

Many people online are surprised that Tom Hooper was not given a Best Director nomination for “Les Miserables,” and Kathryn Bigelow was not nominated for Best Director for Zero Dark Thirty.  Other snubs that stood out were: Marion Cotillard not being nominated for Rust and Bone; Leonardo Dicaprio was not nominated for “Django Unchained,” and “Cloud Atlas” was ignored.  These award ceremonies always leave somebody out, which is why no one is ever completely happy with them.  I only like them because they have made me watch some very interesting films, that I otherwise would have passed up.  People on Facebook called the Oscars a selfish venture of the industry, and many people did not like some of the films nominated, one calling “Lincoln” a “snooze fest.” 

Yet, when you are surprised by great performances like Quvenzhane Wallis as Hushpuppie in “Beasts of the Southern Wild” and Anne Hathaway in “Les Miserables,” and Daniel Day Lewis in “Lincoln,” and Suraj Sharma as Pi in “Life of Pi,”  it makes it all worth it somehow.  Although many films that get nominated won’t get watched more than once, because of difficult subject matter, other films like “Les Miserables” are worth repeated viewings because you want to learn the music enough to sing the melodies to yourself, if you love singing that is. 

I’ve heard good things about “Silver Linings Playbook” and plan to watch it since someone in all the acting categories was nominated for that film.  I also want to see “Amour,” a movie that surprised people with five nominations.  Emmanuelle Riva, at 85, is the oldest Best Actress nominee for “Amour,” and Quvenzhane Wallis, at 9, is the youngest Best Actress nominee for “Beasts,” and they are both competing for the same award! 

A lot that you need to learn about life, you can learn from great movies, with great stories, which is why “Lincoln” and “Life of Pi” and “Beasts” all deserve their nominations.  The competition is very tough, and it’s hard to pick the winners, but I think Lincoln should win the most awards, because of the great script by Gay Playwright, Tony Kushner.  It’s award winning dialogue.

I think “Les Miserables” should win for Production or Set Design, and “Life of Pi” for Cinematography and Special Effects. 

I want Anne Hathaway to win for “Les Miserables,” but, like I said, the competition is tough.  Mike and I both think that Daniel Day Lewis will take home the Oscar for “Lincoln,” and maybe Tommy Lee Jones for “Lincoln,” too. 

The awards are in February this year, a little over a month away, making it difficult to watch all the movies nominated.  Sometimes we wait to see who wins in certain categories, like sound, costume, and music, to see the film. 

There are some great films out there with great messages, and I’m glad we get to see them all.  Some movies with bad reviews, that people say is difficult, and not interesting to watch, like "The Master" we'll probably pass up, but with all those nominations, maybe it'll be worth a watch on video.  Some movies are now on video, like "Beasts," "Brave," "Moonrise Kingdom," and others.  It's all a matter of taste.

Peace, and Best Wishes, Ruben and Mike.