1. 127 Hours
2. How to Train Your Dragon
3. Inception
4. The Social Network
5. Toy Story 3
Trent Reznor’s score for The Social Network is flat-out awesome, as is Hans Zimmer’s work for Inception. They’ll be in the race. Pixar and Randy Newman also usually do well here, hence Toy Story 3. A.R. Rahman recently got into the winner’s circle with Slumdog Millionaire and How to Train Your Dragon’s John Powell has been getting a lot of complements for his nice blend of ethnic and orchestral music. It’d be great to be proven wrong and see Daft Punk’s pounding Tron:Legacy score get in and it never pays to bet against The Ghost Writer’s Alexandre Desplat. His score for The King’s Speech would be the yawn pick, but the Oscars have been known to go that direction before…
Best Original Song
1. I See the Light- Tangled
2. If I Rise- 127 Hours
3. Shine- Waiting for Superman
4. We Belong Together- Toy Story 3
5. You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me- Burlesque
You’re almost certain to see a song from Tangled and Burlesque here, and possibly multiple. “I See the Light” and “You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” are the sure bets, although “I’ve Got a Dream” from Tangled and “Bound to You” from Burlesque could easily substitute or replace one of the other three. “We Belong Together” is a sentimental favorite from former winner Randy Newman and “Shine” and “If I Rise” have been receiving plenty of talk. This category, and particularly this year, is pretty volatile, so How To Train Your Dragon’s “Sticks and Stones” is a distinct possibility as is some dark horse from the 41-strong list of contenders.
Best Costume Design
1. Alice in Wonderland
2. Burlesque
3. The Black Swan
4. The King’s Speech
5. True Grit
This category loves musicals and period pieces, but outside of that it isn’t the easiest to forecast. Alice in Wonderland and The Black Swan are the ones everyone seems to agree on, and after that The King’s Speech and Burlesque seem safe picks. True Grit should get in although outside of that awesome bear I’m not sure why. Julie Taymor’s Shakespearean adaptations usually get recognized although nobody seemed to actually like The Tempest. Secretariat could squeeze in.
Best Art Direction
1. Alice in Wonderland
2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows- Part 1
3. Inception
4. The King’s Speech
5. True Grit
This category is all about set design and creating a physical world, which favors period pieces, sci-fi, and fantasy. These nominees all fit into those categories, although it’s hard to declare a frontrunner. Tron:Legacy or Shutter Island’s impressive design could replace just about any of these.
Best Makeup
1. Alice in Wonderland
2. The Fighter
3. The Wolfman
Alice in Wonderland is assured a spot, and The Wolf Man seems like a safe bet. The shortlist contains some head-scratchers, particularly Jonah Hex, but The Fighter is the likely surviving nominee. Don’t count out Barney’s Version, though, which apparently features some excellent makeup work.
Best Visual Effects
1. Alice in Wonderland
2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows- Part 1
3. Inception
4. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
5. Tron: Legacy
Inception and Tron:Legacy did boundary-changing work this year, and will be recognized. The Harry Potter films usually get some love here, and edition 6.5 will likely continue the trend. Alice in Wonderland’s success will also probably get it a nomination, and I hope Scott Pilgrim vs. the World gets some love somewhere, although Iron Man 2 could just as easily replace it.
Best Sound Editing
1. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows- Part 1
2. Inception
3. The Black Swan
4. Toy Story 3
5. Tron: Legacy
This category has to do with the best overall sound design, including sound effects. This one has to do more with the creation and vision of the overall sound environment in a film. These categories are Inception’s bread and butter and The Black Swan is getting a lot of love for its sound (among other things, of course). Pixar usually does well in sound, and should get a nomination. Harry Potter and Tron: Legacy round out the category as the obligatory blockbusters, although a more explosion-oriented one like Iron Man 2 could get in, too.
Best Sound Mixing
1. Inception
2. The Black Swan
3. The Social Network
4. Toy Story 3
5. Tron: Legacy
This category has to do with the control of the levels of the different sounds that are going on at any given time. It is the more technical of the two categories. Arguably nobody did it better than The Social Network in its nightclub scene. See above for Toy Story 3, InceptionThe Black Swan’s inclusions into this category. Tron: Legacy is the most likely of the blockbuster flicks that usually dominate this category to get in. Something like Iron Man 2 or Harry Potter could replace one of the above as well.
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