The Reader: Surprise of the Year?

The nominations are in. In the best picture category, I scored 4 out of 5. Putting the Dark Knight in there may have been wishful thinking, as I--not usually a superhero person-- honestly believed it to be among the best of the year. I have to admit that I was way off on The Reader--had I not chosen the Dark Knight, my fifth choice would have been either Doubt, Revolutionary Road or The Wrestler.

Although I haven't seen it, I assumed The Reader to be a good, not great, film buoyed by Kate Winslet's strong performance. Another surprise was that Winslet was nominated in the Best Actress category for that role, not for Supporting Actress as was expected, and that she was shut out for Revolutionary Road. For those who didn't watch the Golden Globes, she won in both categories-- Actress for Revolutionary Road, and Supporting Actress for the Reader. Interesting.

So, was it PR? It's been said that this is "Kate Winslet's Year," but Revolutionary Road didn't get quite the reception people expected. Maybe the Academy thought Winslet deserved a Best Actress nomination (generally thought to be more prestigious than Supporting), but couldn't justify it for Revolutionary Road. Maybe they wanted to distance themselves from the Golden Globes.

The funny thing about Oscar is that even the surprises operate on a formula, which itself is likely a result of quietly effective PR. often being "Under the Radar" can work in a movie's favour. Sure, Benjamin Button with its all-star cast and fancy effects leads the nominations, but Slumdog Millionaire and its budget of 6 million is such a feel-good story and has a decent shot at the win. The "Little Movie That Could" is kind of a staple of these nominations-- see Juno and Little Miss Sunshine for reference.

Ingredients missing from this year's mix include:
"Child Star,"
"Should Have Got One Last Year,"
"Likelylastfilmsowebettergivehimonemorekick"-- I guess I was wrong about Clint Eastwood
"Obligatory Clint Eastwood Nomination"-- see above
"Actor Known for Doing Bad Comedy Has One Good Serious Role"

These omissions are what actually surprise me about the selections. That being said, I'm happy to see that "The Comeback" and "The Politically-Charged Topic" are out in full force, especially since Mickey Rourke's performance was excellent and I feel quite strongly about the importance of gay rights.

So, without further ado, here are the actual nominations in the categories I listed yesterday. I've bolded the ones I correctly predicted.

Picture (4/5):
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk

Actor (4/5):
Sean Penn- Milk
Mickey Rourke- The Wrestler
Frank Langella- Frost/Nixon
Brad Pitt- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Richard Jenkins- The Visitor

Actress (3/5):
Kate Winslet- The Reader
Angelina Jolie- Changeling
Melissa Leo- Frozen River
Anne Hathaway- Rachel Getting Married
Meryl Streep- Doubt

Supporting Actor (3/5):
Heath Ledger- The Dark Knight
Phillip Seymour Hoffman- Doubt
Josh Brolin- Milk
Robert Downey Jr.- Tropic Thunder
Michael Shannon- Revolutionary Road

Supporting Actress (3/5):
Viola Davis- Doubt
Amy Adams- Doubt
Taraji P. Henson- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Penelope Cruz- Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Marisa Tomei- The Wrestler

Director (3/5):
Ron Howard- Frost/Nixon
David Fincher- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Danny Boyle- Slumdog Millionaire
Stephen Daldry- The Reader
Gus Van Sant- Milk


Now, what would make me really happy is if Jai-Ho (from Slumdog Millionaire, nominated for Best Song) is performed at the ceremony, along with that delightful dance.