Which Film Should Win The Best Picture Oscar?

[jenny12]

BAFTA (British Oscars) are going on right now.

Skyfall just beat Les Miserables for Best British Film.

I totally agree with that decision. Skyfall was a very good film and surpassed the usual trappings of the Bond genre. Les Miserables in my opinion was horribly directed and melodramatic.

[VIETgrlTerifa]

^ I do too. BAFTA loved Skyfall. They gave it a lot of nominations plus it just beat out superior scores (such as Life of Pi) for Best Score. Although, it did lose Best Cinematography (which was GORGEOUS) to Life of Pi (which was even better).

Argo just lost Best Adapted Screenplay to Silver Linings Playbook (in a huge shocker). Many assumed it was between Argo and Lincoln. If Argo doesn't win Best Picture/Director, then this may be the turning point since this is the award show that can direct the Academy on how to vote since the Academy just sent out their ballots to members two days ago. Never underestimate Harvey Weinstein who is also behind Django Unchained which just won Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor.

[Sofia Alexandra]

Voted for Beasts of the Southern Wild, as it's the only one of those films I really want to see.

[VIETgrlTerifa]

I spoke too soon. Ben Affleck just won Best Director, haha.

^ Sofia Alexandra, you won't be sorry. Beasts of the Southern Wild is truly a gem of a film. The director also wrote the screenplay and the musical score.

ETA:

Heck yeah! Emmanuelle Riva just won Best Actress at BAFTA. She's my first choice with Jessica Chastain second. I was worried with the Silver Linings Playbook win for Screenplay.

[Ziggy]

I can't believe that "Les Mis" got even nominated.

Well I can believe it since Oscars are all about the $$$ but still...

[Maofan7]

Argo won Best Picture and Best Director at tonight's BAFTA's. Confirms it as the front runner for the Oscars

[jenny12]

Argo won Best Picture and Best Director at tonight's Baftas. Confirms it as the front runner for the Oscars

Yeah, it looks like that. It still is hard for me to believe that a film will win Best Picture without a Best Director nomination (which I definitely think it deserved), but the precursors all seem to be pointing in that direction.

[VIETgrlTerifa]

I can't believe that "Les Mis" got even nominated.

Well I can believe it since Oscars are all about the $$$ but still...

I hope it doesn't win four awards like it did at the BAFTAs. So much for the Brits having better taste, eh.

We have to deal with the fact that it'll win at least one with Anne Hathaway.

[Asli]

I hope it doesn't win four awards like it did at the BAFTAs. So much for the Brits having better taste, eh.

We have to deal with the fact that it'll win at least one with Anne Hathaway.

The three other BAFTAs Les Mis won were for production design, make-up/hair and sound. Don't know about the sound since it hasn't premiered here yet, but from the clips the production design and make-up look magnificient.

Plus in her BAFTA acceptance speech one of the production designers said "I had never seen a crew of a hundred carpenters sing I dreamed a dream with their hairy arses hanging out", so extra points for that bit of contribution to the history of cinema.

[Lorac]

Yeah, it looks like that. It still is hard for me to believe that a film will win Best Picture without a Best Director nomination (which I definitely think it deserved), but the precursors all seem to be pointing in that direction.

I really believe that Argo will win Best Picture at the Oscars and one reason I believe is that Ben didn't get the Best Director nomination. If he had (rightly IMHO) gotten the nod there then I think the winner would be more difficult to pick but there seems to be a wave of support building for him at the moment to get some recognition for the work he did on that movie from the Academy. It would be interesting to see the nomination ballots (and I know we never will) to see how much he missed out on getting a nomination nod - some serious politicing from other parties really worked for their candidate(s) this time.

[Vash01]

I really believe that Argo will win Best Picture at the Oscars and one reason I believe is that Ben didn't get the Best Director nomination. If he had (rightly IMHO) gotten the nod there then I think the winner would be more difficult to pick but there seems to be a wave of support building for him at the moment to get some recognition for the work he did on that movie from the Academy. It would be interesting to see the nomination ballots (and I know we never will) to see how much he missed out on getting a nomination nod - some serious politicing from other parties really worked for their candidate(s) this time.

I am not so sure that Argo will win the best picture Oscar, although I would like it to. At least all the uncertainty and drama make the Oscars more interesting this year. I remember how bored I was during the Oscar night when LOTR III was winning in every category. Even the King's speech was a heavy favorite, although I would have been happy with either that or the Social network. This year there are many worthy pictures. The only BP winner that would upset me a bit is Silver linings playbook. That movie has marketing/politicking written all over it. Les Mis is really not that good a movie, but I enjoyed parts of it very much. It could actually win, if the political movies split the votes. I won't be unhappy if Zero Dark Thirty won the BP, but that one is the least likely to win.

[Maofan7]

Nate Silver predicts Argo win

[allezfred]

I've only seen Argo so I suppose I'll go with that.

[Habs]

I finally watched Argo and enjoyed it, but as a Canadian, I have HUGE problems with the historical inaccuracies in that film. Both Ken Taylor and Jimmy Carter have spoken out about the liberties Affleck took with history to turn it into a Hollywood movie. Ken Taylor in particular was initially very upset with how the Canadian role was diminished in the film. Affleck actually changed the original postscript text to make it more accurate to help smooth things over.
I enjoyed it for what it was - a good movie - but I can't get past the altering of the story.

[Vash01]

I finally watched Argo and enjoyed it, but as a Canadian, I have HUGE problems with the historical inaccuracies in that film. Both Ken Taylor and Jimmy Carter have spoken out about the liberties Affleck took with history to turn it into a Hollywood movie. Ken Taylor in particular was initially very upset with how the Canadian role was diminished in the film. Affleck actually changed the original postscript text to make it more accurate to help smooth things over.
I enjoyed it for what it was - a good movie - but I can't get past the altering of the story.

This is a movie, not a documentary. It means the story can be changed to create drama. It's nowhere as distant from the truth as the Social Network was.