What If There Were Five...?
Wednesday, January 26, 2011 at 9:00AM The thought occurred to me early this morning when perusing the Oscar lists that we may have perhaps been wrong about which five films were in leading position. Last year for example the top five were tremendously clear; had there been only five nominees as had been the way of it for five decades plus, you would have been left with Basterds, Locker, Precious, Avatar and Up in the Air.
which movie came in 5th? which was 6th?
But this year, do we know? It's an indulgent question but what is Oscar-fanaticism but indulgent conversations about things one can never know the final truth of. Like who came in 6th? who was snubbed on purpose? who wasn't really snubbed but justmissed?
COMMENT TOPIC: Which five do you think it was? I think we can safely assume that The Fighter, The Social Network, True Grit and The King's Speech would have been there given their big nomination tallies. But then...
Black Swan could have held the 'lone director' spot since its nomination tally was smaller than expected. Inception could have been there without Nolan like another summer director-driven genre blockbuster Jaws without its fabled auteur. Could #5 have been Toy Story 3 or even The Kids Are All Right? Your theories please!
Oscars (10)
Reader Comments (61)
Do you all really think AMPAS will return to 5 nominees?
Get over it, they ruined Oscars forever.
I think it's important to remember that even though Toy Story 3 probably wouldn't have placed in a 5-wide field, it easily could have been voted into the 4th or 5th slot in a 10-wide field. A big part of the change from 5 to 10 has been that voters are now "allowing" themselves to like (and vote for) other movies. I expect that we'll continue to see the following movies be nominated for Best Picture:
-the most well-liked animated film of the year
-one or two small movies that were "discovered" at festivals
-the most well-liked sci-fi movie of the year
However, just because certain types of films have designated "slots" doesn't mean any of them would have had a chance in a 5-wide field. A huge part of the change among voters has been psychological, I bet.
Toy Story 3. Hands down. Up would've been snubbed last year and the battle cry for an animated nominee would have been deafening.
I don’t think Inception is one of the top 5 even it has 8 nominations. I believe if a film get a nom for its director then it shows how strong the movie is. So it must be Black Swan although it missed the screenplay. I think the 6th is actually no other than 127 Hours.
The King's Speech, True Grit, The Fighter, and The Social Network obviously.
I really do think Black Swan was in fifth (although obviously it's just a guess). My main reasons is because of its surprising ubiquity throughout the whole season. I mean, it was a given pretty much that The Kids are all Right would get a SAG nomination, but I honestly didn't think Black Swan had a shot in hell in landing an Ensemble nomination (considering that many thought of it as The Natalie Portman Show). It's Ensemble nomination clearly shows that the actors love it, and due to the overwhelming good feelings toward Darren Aronofsky this season, I think it would've made the top five--but just barely. I'd say The Kids are all Right and Inception were close as well (and maybe even 127 Hours, considering it got a surprising 6 nominations), but I think Inception was obviously more revered for its technical achievements and The Kids are all Right for its acting showcases...
...and p.s. I REALLY hope they go back to five soon. Does anyone know when and if The Academy votes on this? I know the new president was just elected last year, so it may be a couple more years before they decide to change it...
James C -- "less animated that Toy Story 3" i love it.
volvagia -- Scarlett's age had nothing to do with that lack of traction. That type of role --and to some extent that type of movie -- is immune to major awards. and if you doubt that Greek Wedding would have been in the top ten you were not watching that year. People were INSANE for taht movie and it major Hollywood backing (hi, Tom Hanks), Never mind that it was a bad movie; people loved it and the heart wants what it wants.
I think Black Swan would have gotten in there despite the presence of Inceptions Screenplay nod. It's a tough call because both Inception and Black Swan have been included in every awards race.
Would everyone have expected True Grit to be one of the five before nominations came out? I agree with the consensus that given the overall tally it's clear it would have made it but I think I would have gone in expecting Social Network, King's Speech, Fighter, Inception, & Black Swan and been surprised when True Grit bumped one of the last two.
Or maybe it was obvious how much love True Grit was getting if you were paying more attention than I was...
ScarJo's age probably had at least something to do with the lack of traction. My main point was "Audrey Tautou was their #6 Lead Actress", and I'd like to see if you agree with that assessment.
I honestly don't understand why 'The Fighter' is even in the top 4, so personally my top five would be 'The social network', 'True grit', 'The king's speech', '127 hours', with Nolan and Aronofsky getting nominated for Best director over Hooper and Boyle, or perhaps even instead of Fincher.
Knowing the Academy's increased emphasis on listening to more of the populous, I'd think there was more consideration given to Inception for that fifth spot. Of course, knowing their constant love for smaller, more arty films and the weight given to their matching the Best Director nods, Black Swan could easily be there too. I'd say Inception goes in the fifth spot.