OK, so here are the winners, and my thoughts on the films.
Best Motion Picture of the Year
Winner:
Crash (2004) - Paul Haggis, Cathy Schulman
Other Nominees:
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Diana Ossana, James Schamus
Capote (2005) - Caroline Baron, William Vince, Michael Ohoven
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - Grant Heslov
Munich (2005) - Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, Barry Mendel
I'm pretty shocked at this myself, obviously its my own opinion, but i was sure Brokeback would get this one. Now thats not to say i liked it, personally i found Brokeback to be sanctimonious crap, the performances weren't that great either, but ALOT of people in the right places have liked it.
Crash, i don't feel deserved the nod either. It was an ok film, but i think that Capote and GN,aGL are far better. Munich, again i wasn't to entralled by.
I would have given this one to Good Night.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Winner:
Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote (2005)
Other Nominees:
Terrence Howard for Hustle & Flow (2005)
Heath Ledger for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Joaquin Phoenix for Walk the Line (2005)
David Strathairn for Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005)
This was the RIGHT decision. Hoffman has consistantly given outstanding performances, and Capote was no different.
For me it was two horse race, as Phoenix is another guy who is consistant with performance, and Walk the Line was a fantastic movie.
Ledger, i can honestly say, i have never been more then mildly entertained by him in any of his movies.
Although i havent seen Hustle & Flow yet, i do like Howard, however i gotta say, his nomination here seems a bit 'lets get a Black representative so we don't appear racist anymore' as the film hasnt lit up many critics. I could be wrong and he deserves to be there, but i just havent heard or seen any buzz that suggests its anything other then the committees covering their back.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Winner:
Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line (2005)
Other Nominees:
Judi Dench for Mrs. Henderson Presents (2005)
Felicity Huffman for Transamerica (2005)
Keira Knightley for Pride & Prejudice (2005)
Charlize Theron for North Country (2005)
This was THE right choice again. Reese is magnificent in this movie.
Keira never stood a chance for me, her performance in P&P was good, but not great.
Same with Theron and Dench. They are proven actors, but i was not blown away by either performance.
Huffman, well i saw TransAmerica last week, its a bit, blah, but she is really good in it. Did it deserve an Oscar nod...any other year probably not, but the competition this year wasn't that great.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Winner:
George Clooney for Syriana (2005)
Other Nominees:
Matt Dillon for Crash (2004)
Paul Giamatti for Cinderella Man (2005)
Jake Gyllenhaal for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
William Hurt for A History of Violence (2005)
I'm torn on this one. I like Clooney, i thought Syriana was a good movie, i enjoyed him in it, HOWEVER, Paul Giamatti is possibly one of my fave actors at the moment. He, Like Hoffman and Phoenix, is a guy who is consistantly on top form, even in dire movies(which this truly was) he is worth watching...i am looking forward to his upcoming movie with M. Night Shaylaman called 'Lady in the Water'. Any movie that has him as romantic lead os definately worth a watch.
Gyllenhaal was mediocre in BM(can you tell i didnt like it yet?) but i know he is a good actor, i think he was brilliant in Donnie Darko, so was disappointed with him here.
Hurt was a good in a good movie, just think he didn't deserve this award.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Winner:
Rachel Weisz for The Constant Gardener (2005)
Other Nominees:
Amy Adams for Junebug (2005)
Catherine Keener for Capote (2005)
Frances McDormand for North Country (2005)
Michelle Williams for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Again correct decision, however, i am a huge McDormand fan, ever since Fargo, so i would not have been upset if she had won.
Not seen Junebug, BUT Amy Adams would have got my vote JUST because she was Tara's 'family' in Buffy.....wow a Buffy guester up for an oscar.......amazing
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Best Achievement in Directing
Winner:
Ang Lee for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Other Nominees:
George Clooney for Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005)
Paul Haggis for Crash (2004)
Bennett Miller for Capote (2005)
Steven Spielberg for Munich (2005)
Really not getting the hype here for BM, my choice would have been Bennett Miller.
Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen
Winner:
Crash (2004) - Paul Haggis, Robert Moresco
Other Nominees:
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - George Clooney, Grant Heslov
Match Point (2005) - Woody Allen
The Squid and the Whale (2005) - Noah Baumbach
Syriana (2005) - Stephen Gaghan
This was another shock for me, i have seen all bar The Squid and the Whale, and i actually think Clooney and Heslov derseved it.
Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
Winner:
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana
Other Nominees:
Capote (2005) - Dan Futterman
The Constant Gardener (2005) - Jeffrey Caine
A History of Violence (2005) - Josh Olson
Munich (2005) - Tony Kushner, Eric Roth
GAAAA WHY WON'T IT DIE!!!
My choice here would hace been Capote, but Constant Gardener would have been a close second.
Best Achievement in Cinematography
Winner:
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Dion Beebe
Other Nominees:
Batman Begins (2005) - Wally Pfister
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Rodrigo Prieto
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - Robert Elswit
The New World (2005) - Emmanuel Lubezki
Geisha was one of the most beautifully shot movies of the year, totally deserved this award.
Best Achievement in Editing
Winner:
Crash (2004) - Hughes Winborne
Other Nominees:
Cinderella Man (2005) - Daniel P. Hanley, Mike Hill
The Constant Gardener (2005) - Claire Simpson
Munich (2005) - Michael Kahn
Walk the Line (2005) - Michael McCusker
Best Achievement in Art Direction
Winner:
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - John Myhre, Gretchen Rau
Other Nominees:
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - James D. Bissell, Jan Pascale
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) - Stuart Craig, Stephanie McMillan
King Kong (2005) - Grant Major, Dan Hennah, Simon Bright
Pride & Prejudice (2005) - Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer
Best Achievement in Costume Design
Winner:
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Colleen Atwood
Other Nominees:
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) - Gabriella Pescucci
Mrs. Henderson Presents (2005) - Sandy Powell
Pride & Prejudice (2005) - Jacqueline Durran
Walk the Line (2005) - Arianne Phillips
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score
Winner:
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Gustavo Santaolalla
Other Nominees:
The Constant Gardener (2005) - Alberto Iglesias
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - John Williams
Munich (2005) - John Williams
Pride & Prejudice (2005) - Dario Marianelli
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song
Winner:
Hustle & Flow (2005) - Jordan Houston, Cedric Coleman, Paul Beauregard ("It's Hard Out Here For a Pimp")
Other Nominees:
Crash (2004) - Michael Becker, Kathleen York ("In the Deep")
Transamerica (2005) - Dolly Parton ("Travelin' Thru")
Best Achievement in Makeup
Winner:
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) - Howard Berger, Tami Lane
Other Nominees:
Cinderella Man (2005) - David LeRoy Anderson, Lance Anderson
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005) - Dave Elsey, Annette Miles
Best Achievement in Sound
Winner:
King Kong (2005) - Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges, Hammond Peek
Other Nominees:
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) - Terry Porter, Dean A. Zupancic, Tony Johnson
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Kevin O'Connell, Greg P. Russell, Rick Kline, John Pritchett
Walk the Line (2005) - Paul Massey, Doug Hemphill, Peter F. Kurland
War of the Worlds (2005) - Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer, Ron Judkins
Best Achievement in Sound Editing
Winner:
King Kong (2005) - Mike Hopkins, Ethan Van der Ryn
Other Nominees:
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Wylie Stateman
War of the Worlds (2005) - Richard King
Not really got an opinion on these.
Best Achievement in Visual Effects
Winner:
King Kong (2005) - Joe Letteri, Brian Van't Hul, Christian Rivers, Richard Taylor
Other Nominees:
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) - Dean Wright, Bill Westenhofer, Jim Berney, Scott Farrar
War of the Worlds (2005) - Pablo Helman, Dennis Muren, Randy Dutra, Daniel Sudick
This one was a great selection. I don't think i would have gone King Kong though, Narnia was just awesome.
Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
Winner:
Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005) - Steve Box, Nick Park
Other Nominees:
Corpse Bride (2005) - Tim Burton, Mike Johnson
Hauru no ugoku shiro (2004) - Hayao Miyazaki
I personally didn't doubt that Wallace would win this. The competition wasnt that great, though don't think i believe this a poor movie. I think this one would have proved a worthy adversary to movies like Nemo, Shrek or the Incredibles in any other year, i just dont think CB was that great and i got bored with Hauru.
Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
Winner:
Tsotsi (2005) - Gavin Hood (South Africa)
Other Nominees:
Bestia nel cuore, La (2005) - Cristina Comencini (Italy)
Joyeux Noà«l (2005) - Christian Carion (France)
Paradise Now (2005) - Hany Abu-Assad (Palestine)
Sophie Scholl - Die letzten Tage (2005) - Marc Rothemund (Germany)
Best Documentary, Features
Winner:
Marche de l'empereur, La (2005) - Luc Jacquet, Yves Darondeau
Other Nominees:
Darwin's Nightmare (2004) - Hubert Sauper
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005) - Alex Gibney, Jason Kliot
Murderball (2005) - Henry Alex Rubin, Dana Adam Shapiro
Street Fight (2005) - Marshall Curry
Best Documentary, Short Subjects
Winner:
A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin (2005) - Corinne Marrinan, Eric Simonson
Other Nominees:
God Sleeps in Rwanda (2005) - Kimberlee Acquaro, Stacy Sherman
The Life of Kevin Carter (2004) - Dan Krauss
The Mushroom Club (2005) - Steven Okazaki
Best Short Film, Animated
Winner:
The Moon and the Son (2005) - John Canemaker, Peggy Stern
Other Nominees:
Badgered (2005) - Sharon Colman
The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello (2005) - Anthony Lucas
9 (2005) - Shane Acker
One Man Band (2005) - Mark Andrews, Andrew Jimenez
Best Short Film, Live Action
Winner:
Six Shooter (2005) - Martin McDonagh
Other Nominees:
Ausreißer (2004) - Ulrike Grote
Cashback (2004) - Sean Ellis, Lene Bausager
Sàà°asti bærinn à dalnum (2004) - Rúnar Rúnarsson, àžórir Snær Sigurjónsson
Our Time Is Up (2004) - Rob Pearlstein, Pia Clemente
Didnt have an opinion as i havent seen most.
So, i hope you enjoyed this read
🙂