85th Oscar Nominations Announced

So, the Oscar nominations landed this morning...

Wow. Every year there are surprises, and this year wasn't lacking in them. Lincoln, of course, leads with 12 nominations, but Life of Pi is right behind with 11 of its own. Ben Affleck, Kathryn Bigelow, and Tom Hooper were not nominated for Best Director. Amour racked up 5 nominations, including Best Picture. Joaquin Phoenix did get nominated, and Leonardo DiCaprio didn't. While Silver Linings Playbook got 4 acting nominations, Anna Karenina pulled off 4 technical nods, and The Intouchables missed in Best Foreign Language Film. In addition, Seth MacFarlane got a nomination for Best Original Song (not entirely a surprise), and Snow White and the Huntsman was nominated twice. Sadly, films such as Cloud Atlas, The Dark Knight Rises, and Rust and Bone were left out, as many contenders always are.

Anyway, here's a breakdown of the nominees and how I did with my predictions. Onward and upward!

Best Picture:
--Amour
--Argo
--Beasts of the Southern Wild
--Django Unchained
--Life of Pi
--Lincoln
--Les Misérables
--Silver Linings Playbook
--Zero Dark Thirty

I was 7/9 (predicted 8 noms) in my predictions. I should've stuck with my Amour prediction and dropped The Master. Oh well. Should be seeing Amour and Zero Dark Thirty over the weekend. In the meantime, yay Les Mis!

Best Director:
--Michael Haneke, Amour
--Ang Lee, Life of Pi
--David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook
--Steven Spielberg, Lincoln
--Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild

I was 2/5 in my predictions. Happy to see Haneke here, but Affleck missing is a disappointment.

Best Actor:
--Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook
--Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln
--Hugh Jackman, Les Misérables
--Joaquin Phoenix, The Master
--Denzel Washington, Flight

I was 4/5 in my predictions. But I called Phoenix at least. Glad Cooper made it in, but Day-Lewis will win this easily.

Best Actress:
--Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty
--Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook
--Emmanuelle Riva, Amour
--Quvenzhane Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild
--Naomi Watts, The Impossible

I was 4/5 in my predictions. It's a shame about Cotillard, but this is a solid lineup.

Best Supporting Actor:
--Alan Arkin, Argo
--Robert De Niro, Silver Linings Playbook
--Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master
--Tommy Lee Jones, Lincoln
--Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained

I was 3/5 in my predictions. Jones or Hoffman will probably get a second Oscar here. Sorry, Leo.

Best Supporting Actress:
--Amy Adams, The Master
--Sally Field, Lincoln
--Anne Hathaway, Les Misérables
--Helen Hunt, The Sessions
--Jacki Weaver, Silver Linings Playbook

I was 4/5 in my predictions. Weaver came out of nowhere, as the Academy clearly loved the film.

Best Adapted Screenplay:
--Argo
--Beasts of the Southern Wild
--Life of Pi
--Lincoln
--Silver Linings Playbook

I was 4/5 in my predictions. Wasn't sure if Life of Pi was that strong, but 11 nominations proves it is, indeed.

Best Original Screenplay:
--Amour
--Django Unchained
--Flight
--Moonrise Kingdom
--Zero Dark Thirty

I was 4/5 in my predictions. Flight slipped in after all. 'Nuff said.

Best Production Design:
--Anna Karenina
--The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
--Life of Pi
--Lincoln
--Les Misérables

I was 3/5 in my predictions. The Hobbit was an oversight on my part, and Life of Pi is a minor surprise.

Best Cinematography:
--Anna Karenina
--Django Unchained
--Life of Pi
--Lincoln
--Skyfall

I was 4/5 in my predictions. Django managed to get nominated, and deservedly so. Go Skyfall!

Best Costume Design:
--Anna Karenina
--Lincoln
--Les Misérables
--Mirror Mirror
--Snow White and the Huntsman

I was 3/5 in my predictions. I had Mirror Mirror and Snow White and the Huntsman just on the outside.

Best Film Editing:
--Argo
--Life of Pi
--Lincoln
--Silver Linings Playbook
--Zero Dark Thirty

I was 3/5 in my predictions. This (along with their other nods) proves Life of Pi and Silver Linings Playbook are still legit contenders.

Best Original Score:
--Anna Karenina
--Argo
--Life of Pi
--Lincoln
--Skyfall

I was 4/5 in my predictions. Missed Skyfall, but I'm glad it got recognized. Sorry, Beasts, Cloud Atlas, and The Master.

Best Original Song:
--"Before My Time", Chasing Ice
--"Everybody Needs a Best Friend", Ted
--"Pi's Lullaby", Life of Pi
--"Skyfall", Skyfall
--"Suddenly", Les Misérables

I was 2/5 in my predictions, which can happen a lot in this category. Thrilled that "Skyfall" got in, and it's interesting that MacFarlane actually got nominated.

 Best Makeup and Hairstyling:
--Hitchcock
--The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
--Les Misérables

I was 2/3 in my predictions. Strange that Lincoln didn't manage a nod.

 Best Sound Mixing:
--Argo
--Life of Pi
--Lincoln
--Les Misérables
--Skyfall

I was 2/5 in my predictions. Argo clearly has supporters, but Best Director must've been extremely crowded.

Best Sound Editing:
--Argo
--Django Unchained
--Life of Pi
--Skyfall
--Zero Dark Thirty

I was 3/5 in my predictions. Wondering if Life of Pi could be this year's Hugo, and sweep the Sound and Visual Effects categories.

Best Visual Effects:
--The Avengers
--The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
--Life of Pi
--Prometheus
--Snow White and the Huntsman

I was 4/5 in my predictions. Missed Snow White, but Life of Pi probably has this win locked up.

Best Animated Feature Film:
--Brave
--Frankenweenie
--ParaNorman
--The Pirates! Band of Misfits
--Wreck-It Ralph

I was 4/5 in my predictions. Surprised The Pirates! got in. Who saw that coming?

Best Documentary Feature Film:
--5 Broken Cameras
--The Gatekeepers
--How to Survive a Plague
--The Invisible War
--Searching for Sugar Man

I was 3/5 in my predictions. Nice to see The Invisible War get a nod. Not sure what will win at the moment.

Best Foreign Language Feature Film:
--Amour (Austria)
--Kon-Tiki (Norway)
--No (Chile)
--A Royal Affair (Denmark)
--War Witch (Canada)

I was 4/5 in my predictions. Stunned that The Intouchables missed here. I guess it wasn't as strong as most thought.

Overall, I predicted 73/107 (or 68%) correctly. In a year as tough as this, I'm happy with that.

Other categories I didn't predict:

Best Documentary Short Film:
Inocente
Kings Point
Mondays at Racine
Open Heart
Redemption

Best Animated Short Film:
Adam and Dog
Fresh Guacamole
Head Over Heels
Maggie Simpson in "The Longest Daycare"
Paperman

Best Live Action Short Film:
Asad
Buzkashi Boys
Curfew
Death of a Shadow (Dood van een Schaduw)
Henry

Closer to the winners ceremony, which is February 24, I'll post my winner predictions. As you were.