Oscar Predictions and Wishes for The 85th Academy Awards

On February 24th 2013, The Academy Awards will be held for the 85th time - recognizing the films from the previous year that were deemed "the best".  The importance of the Oscars is often questioned, but regardless of who is nominated, this celebration of film is a great tool for encouraging people to see films they might not have seen otherwise.  Inevitably, the Oscars invite discussion and debate over an art that is often overlooked as simply entertainment.

A personal note about the nominations: I was quite thrilled to see Michael Haneke's Palme d'Or winning film Amour nominated outside of the foreign language category in writing, directing, and ultimately the best picture category.  This nomination brings to mind the Academy Awards in the 1960s and 1970s when it wasn't as surprising to see a non-Enlish speaking film nominated (thanks to the films of Fellini, Bergman, and Kurosawa).  However, it was surprising to see Paul Thomas Anderson not get nominated for best directing or best screenwriting for his latest masterwork The Master (even cinematography and costume design would have been welcome).  Additionally, the technical aspects of Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom were certainly praise-worthy.
THE PREDICTIONS
On the left - under each category - is the film that I believe the Academy will select.  These will be highlighted in red. On the right - under each category - is the film that I would personally select as the winner.  These will be highlighted in blue.

BEST PICTURE

Lincoln                          Amour     

BEST DIRECTOR

Steven Spielberg (Lincoln)                   Michael Haneke (Amour)

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)                       Joaquin Phoenix (The Master)

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

Emmanuelle Riva (Amour)                    Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty)

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master)               Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master)            

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables)              Amy Adams (The Master)

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

Amour             Amour

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Zero Dark Thirty (Mark Boal)        Moonrise Kingdom (Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola)

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Lincoln                Lincoln

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Skyfall               Django Unchained

BEST FILM EDITING

Argo             Zero Dark Thirty

BEST SOUND EDITING

Django Unchained           Django Unchained

BEST SOUND MIXING

Les Miserables           Argo

BEST MAKEUP

The Hobbit (Pt. 1)           The Hobbit (Pt. 1)

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Anna Karenina        Anna Karenina

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

John Williams (Lincoln)         Dario Marianelli (Anna Karenina)

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

Skyfall          Skyfall

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Life of Pi        The Hobbit (Pt. 1)

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

Wreck-It-Ralph           Brave

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM

Paperman            Paperman

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM

Death of A Shadow            Death of A Shadow

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Searching For Sugarman          How To Survive A Plague

BEST SHORT SUBJECT DOCUMENTARY

Kings Point        Kings Point

http://oscar.go.com/nominees