Oscar Hot Picks

07 January 2009

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So it's the Golden Globes at the weekend, but I will get to my predictions for that later this week, and they are usually a good indicator as to who will win what, or not as the case will be, come the Academy Awards.

And there are some seriously strong performances this time around in all categories that there is no clear fun away favourite, not to mention a few Brits knocking about as well, so it's time to take a closer look at those who have a serious chance of walking home with a gong on the big night in February.

Best Picture really could go to a number of pictures with many movies sharing the award during this award season with the likes of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Milk and Wall-E all getting a look in at some point.

But there are two British pictures that everyone really should keep an eye on and they are Slumdog Millionaire and Happy Go Lucky who have both found themselves buckling under the weight of all the awards that have come their way in recent weeks.

Sean Penn is really leading the pack when it comes to Best Actor for his role as the first elected gay political Harvey Milk in the biopic picture Milk, biopic performances always go down well with the Academy and critics. However he won his first Oscar back in 2002 for Mystic River and it may be too soon to give him a second.

Keep an eye on Mickey Rourke's new movie The Wrestler which is winning over critics left right and centre and lit up the festival circuit late last year. This performance, which resurrects his career, could ruin Penn's party.

While everyone expected Best Actress to be a three horse race between Kate Winslet, Meryl Streep and Angelina Jolie, Streep really is a long shot. Plus Winslet's performance in Revolutionary Road isn't picking up pre-Oscar awards but surely it's about time she won one?

But the name to watch out for is fellow Brit Sally Hawkins for her performance in Happy-Go-Lucky which is dominating awards ceremonies of late and she really could be a dark horse.

Best Supporting Actor really could go to Heath Ledger for his performance as The Joker but he is facing strong competition from Josh Brolin for her performance as Dan White in Milk and Eddie Marsan in Happy Go Lucky.

And it really could be a Brit fest for Best Director as Mike Leigh, Danny Boyle and Sam Mendes could all walk away with the award for their respective projects. Leigh most recently won Best Director at The National Society of Film Critics awards and Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire has also been a popular choice.

The Academy Awards take place on 22nd February

FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw

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