2002 Best Director and Best Picture Races
This will be our last look at the main categories for this year’s awards ceremonies. The Best Director and Best Picture awards will cap off the evening of the 75th Academy Awards gala. Rarely do these two awards go to different films, however this has been a much more common occurrence in recent years. This year, I expect the two awards to be split between two different films. Who would I say is going to win? Read on for the whole story.
Let’s start with the race for Best Director
Pedro Almodovar for Hable Con Ella
I did not get a chance to see this film, so I can’t say one way or another whether Almodovar did a nice job with it. However, I can say that all indications are that this is just a fabulous film as most who have seen it are tickled by Almodovar’s nomination. Will he win for Best Director though? I highly doubt it..
Stephen Daldry for The Hours
Daldry’s The Hours was one of the early favorites in a number of categories, but in the directorial category he is up against it. I don’t expect a win for The Hours, but if there is one, he has promised to deliver an anti-war acceptance speech, something many of those in attendance would love to here.
Rob Marshall for Chicago
I think Chicago will win for Best Picture (more below) and that would normally indicate that Marshall has a very good chance to win this award. It would not surprise me, in any way, if he did get the trophy, but I personally don’t think he will. Marshall does a fabulous job in bringing together the group of actors and creating a beautiful recreation of the musical on which it was based. The cuts that he uses to bring this to the screen allow us to feel a bit of the Broadway nature of things, but improved upon with a film point of view.
Roman Polanski for The Pianist
Polanski delivers a truly powerful Holocaust film that walks us through one man’s life as he struggles to stay alive. Polanski’s film is truly a spectacle and one of the very best films of the year. What are his odds to win the big prize? That depends. I would think that he really wouldn’t win the award, fairly or unfairly, because of personal reasons. He committed some crimes in the US that he still has yet to pay for. However, Hollywood has a tendency to flaunt society on issues like this so I just never know. Personal issues aside, I wouldn’t mind seeing him win the award as The Pianist is just that good.
Martin Scorsese for Gangs Of New York
My choice for the category and I really think he will win the award. While there is great discussion on whether or not there is a better version of this film that could be released, there is no doubt that this is a very strong epic film. Scorsese gets the absolute best out of Daniel Day-Lewis and delivers a picture that is visually stunning. I really believe that Scorsese deserves this award and will be given the statue this year if not strictly for his work on this film, then definitely for his work as a whole. Again, Scorsese is not only my choice for the award, I also think he will win the award.
Our last major category to discuss is Best Picture. This one is starting to look like it is academic, but you never can tell what will come out on top until the envelope is opened. Let’s take a look at the five Best Picture candidates.
Chicago
This is the one that most individuals have said will win best picture, and I would tend to agree. Chicago is a toe tapping well-made picture that does a great job of engaging the viewer in the world that it has created. I fully expect this film will probably win the award and I wouldn’t be disappointed if it happened. I truly enjoyed Chicago from start to finish and much like Moulin Rouge before it, is a welcome resurgence to the heyday of the Hollywood musical. I wouldn’t be disappointed if Chicago wins as expected, but if I voted, I would send my vote somewhere else.
Gangs of New York
If I voted, I would vote for Gangs of New York. This film ended up high on my top 10 films of 2002 and had me in awe when I first saw it. The film is one of the most visually spectacular films of its kind to be released, and while there may be small problems with it, I had such an emotional attachment to the film that I think it was the best film of the year. True, it was very violent, but I felt the violence was for the most part in context of the film and necessary to increase the viewer’s attachment to the film. A great film, Gangs of New York is my choice, and it probably has about a 30% chance of winning the award behind Chicago’s 50-60% chance.
The Hours
Didn’t see this one as mentioned in the other columns of days gone by, but I just think that there is so much momentum for Chicago right now that it will be hard to knock it off.
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
This is a really good film that got left out in the cold this year. After everyone and their brother were falling all over the original film of the trilogy, people forgot about this one. I guess that means the Oscar campaign for the third film in the trilogy will be fierce. This will definitely take it’s place in history, but it won’t win this year’s award.
The Pianist
A fabulous film that looks inside a Holocaust story and a type of movie that Oscar loves. This is not the year for The Pianist, however it did land a place in my top 10. A great film that I would not mind seeing take home the top prize in the industry, however this is Chicago’s year and it has been anointed the film to beat. Take some time and see this film if you haven’t already, it is very strong.
That’s it for the biggest categories. Check back tomorrow for a roundup of things, and a look at some other factors with this years ceremony. We’ll have to wait until Sunday night, March 23 and the 75th annual Academy Award ceremonies on ABC to see whom the winners will be.
© 2003 Paul Hall, All Rights Reserved