Tonight is the night! As the 2015 Academy Awards rolls out the red carpet for a group of unfortunately-dressed starlets and the comical (and musical) stylings of Neal Patrick Harris, Her Campus weighs in on our picks to win this years’ awards.
Best Picture
Nominated:
American Sniper, Birdman, The Imitation Game, Boyhood, Grand Budapest Hotel, Selma, The Theory of Everything, Whiplash.
HC’s pick: Boyhood. Putting aside the angelic face of Ellar Coltrane (not including the cringeworthy 20 minutes that portrayed him at his greasiest and most pubescent state), and the throwbacks to our childhood, let’s seriously talk about how ambitious Richard Linklater’s concept for this film was. Imagine spending twelve years filming a movie and not getting an Oscar. The thought of that outcome is just too depressing to entertain.
Leading Actor
Nominees: Steve Carell in Foxcatcher, Bradley Cooper in American Sniper, Benedict Cumberbatch in The Imitation Game, Michael Keaton in Birdman, Eddie Redmayne in The Theory of Everything
HC’s pick: Despite our longing for Bradley Cooper since his Hangover days, Michael Keaton will win this one because he’s Michael Keaton.
Leading Actress
Nominees: Marion Cotillard in Two Days, One Night, Felicity Jones in The Theory of Everything, Rosamund Pike in Gone Girl, Julianna Moore in Still Alice, and Reese Witherspoon in Wild
HC’s Pick: Sorry, Elle Woods. We love you but did not enjoy your 2+ hour-long journey through the forest that magically transformed you from a sex-crazed heroin-addict to a granola-crunching hippie. Julianne Moore’s performance, on the other hand, managed to make us cry.
Supporting Actor
Nominees: Robert Duvall in The Judge, Ethan Hawke in Boyhood, Edward Norton in Birdman, Mark Ruffalo in Foxcatcher, JK Simmons in Whiplash HC’s Pick: Ethan Hawke because he was the only one in the whole film who managed to barely age over the past twelve years. Props.
Supporting Actress
Nominated: Patricia Arquette in Boyhood, Laura Dern in Wild, Kiera Knightley in The Imitation Game, Emma Stone in Birdman, Meryl Streep in Into the Woods
HC’s Pick: If Meryl Streep were nominated for anything other than her role in Into the Woods (which I did not have the misfortune of seeing), she would be my pick as she is obviously a superior life form to all of the other mere mortals nominated in this category. Considering the circumstances, Boyhood takes the cake for this one because Patricia Arquette’s breakdown when her son moves to college actually made me leave the theater to call my mom and tell her I love her.