With only a week to go before the Oscars, the all-important Best Picture prize appears locked in a two-horse race between dark comedy "Birdman" and coming-of-age drama "Boyhood."
But as Hollywood counts down the days to next Sunday's show, some are suggesting that controversial blockbuster "American Sniper" could yet surprise, and beat the two indie films.
"'Boyhood' and 'Birdman' are the frontrunners, and 'American Sniper' is the dark horse," Matthew Belloni, executive editor of industry journal The Hollywood Reporter, told AFP.
"I wouldn't be surprised if 'American Sniper' had a last-minute surge, because of how well it's doing at the box office," he added, referring to the movie's $365 million-plus global box office haul so far.
The Academy Awards have traditionally favored more independent, art-house fare for Best Picture, handed out at the climax of Hollywood's annual December-to-February awards season.
Washed-up superhero star
"Birdman" -- about a washed-up superhero film star battling to revive his career on the stage -- is definitely more along its usual lines, as is "Boyhood," which took 12 years to make as the actors aged in real time.
Both have fared well in pre-Oscars shows, with "Boyhood" taking the Golden Globes' best film, while "Birdman' won a string of awards including top prizes at the Screen Actors Guild and Directors Guild of America.
But Clint Eastwood's "American Sniper" has unexpectedly stirred up the race, grabbing headlines both for its massive box office success and a row over its portrayal an Iraq war warrior.
Filmmaker Michael Moore claimed it hero-worships former Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, while Tea Party firebrand and former vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin said leftists were "not fit to shine Chris Kyle's combat boots."
The question is, how many of the 6,000-odd voting members of the prestigious Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the industry's elite body, will be swayed at this late stage?
They began casting ballots on February 6, and voting closes on Tuesday at 5:00 pm (0100 GMT Monday) -- after which only two PriceWaterhouse Coopers staff will know the results before the envelopes are opened on stage next Sunday.
While the Best Picture race is too close to call, several of the other key categories are seen as much easier to predict.
Julianne Moore is almost universally expected to win best actress for playing a professor suffering from early-onset Alzheimer's Disease in "Still Alice."
Patricia Arquette is the favorite for best supporting actress as the mother in "Boyhood."
Best actor is between "Birdman" star Michael Keaton and Britain's Eddie Redmayne as astrophysicist Stephen Hawking in "The Theory of Everything," while J.K. Simmons is tipped for supporting actor for jazz drama "Whiplash."
Belloni said his personal forecast for best director is Mexico's Alejandro Inarritu for "Birdman" -- with the best picture going to "Boyhood."
"So the Academy will split... much like it did last year," he said, referring to "12 Years a Slave" taking the best film prize in 2014, while "Gravity" helmer Alfonso Cuaron -- also Mexican -- took best director.
Uproar over all-white nominees
Talking of "12 Years a Slave," there was uproar last month when Oscar nominations were announced, over the fact that every single one of the 20 acting nominees are white.
While Martin Luther King Jr movie "Selma" is among the eight Best Picture nominees, eyebrows were raised that neither its British star David Oyelowo nor director Ava DuVernay were shortlisted individually.
"The real snub here is that David Oyelowo... I think a lot of people were surprised that he did not get a nomination for that," said Belloni.
More broadly, he said, Academy members "feel bad" that only white actors were nominated this year, but added: "I think the problem goes deeper than that.
"The Academy nominates the films that are put up for contention, and other than 'Selma' there really weren't films that featured minority actors in leading and hefty roles," Belloni added.
"It goes to the kinds of movies that are getting green-lit in Hollywood, and the kinds of people who are making those decisions. Hollywood has made strides in recent years to rectify the diversity problem, but it still exists."
AFP
Sun Feb 15 2015
"Birdman" is the race for the Best Picture category in the upcoming Oscars. - File pic
AWANI Ringkas: Nahas helikopter TLDM | Pengedaran dadah
Ikuti rangkuman berita utama yang menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari di Astro AWANI menerusi AWANI Ringkas.
Polis tumpaskan sindiket seludup dadah ke Sarawak, tahan dua lelaki
Polis percaya berjaya menumpaskan sindiket penyeludupan dadah ke Sarawak dengan penahanan dua buruh binaan dan merampas pelbagai dadah bernilai RM1.76 juta di dua lokasi berasingan, pada Isnin lepas.
Umat Islam perlu celik digital untuk tunai umrah
Forum Umrah dan Ziarah 2024, kali ini diadakan di Madinah menjadi platform penting bagi mengumpulkan semua pemain industri perkhidmatan
Panggilan ‘daddy’ di pengebumian wira Wan Rezaudeen Kamal buat orang ramai sebak
Antara yang turut mengiringi perjalanan terakhir Allahyarham adalah Menteri Pertahanan, Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
AWANI Tonight: Bridging gaps in AUKU for better student empowerment
Amendments to the Universities and University Colleges Act give students more autonomy in managing their associations’ finances. Rasydan Mohd Hassan, formerly of the National Student Consultative Council, explains what this means for student empowerment.
AWANI Tonight: UN Human Rights calls for independent investigation on Gaza mass graves
The UN Human Rights calls for an independent and transparent investigation into the mass graves found in and around hospitals in Gaza, including the Nasser Hospital.
AWANI Tonight: The US Senate approves bill to ban TikTok
The US Senate has approved a controversial landmark bill that could see TikTok banned in America, with President Joe Biden saying he would sign it into law as soon as it reaches his desk.
Capital A zahirkan minat beli lapangan terbang di ASEAN
Aviation Services iaitu perkhidmatan penerbangan di bawah Capital A Bhd menzahirkan minat memiliki lapangan terbang di seluruh ASEAN.
Nahas helikopter Lumut: Jenazah Komander Muhammad Firdaus selamat dikebumi di kampung halaman
Jenazah Allahyarham Muhammad Firdaus disemadi dengan penuh istiadat pengebumian ketenteraan di Tanah Perkuburan Islam Masjid Jamek Sungai Nibong Besar.
AWANI Tonight: 24 April 2024
#AWANITonight with @_farhanasheikh
1. MACC detains MB's son, five others
2. TikTok faces US ban
#AWANIEnglish #AWANINews
1. MACC detains MB's son, five others
2. TikTok faces US ban
#AWANIEnglish #AWANINews
Oscar: Meriah dalam kepelbagaian, bagaimana peluang filem tempatan?
Perjalanan filem tempatan masih jauh untuk memperbaiki mutu filem tempatan dan membina rangkaian serta menyusun strategi pemasaran yang berkesan.
Sean Connery pernah luahkan rasa menyampah terhadap watak James Bond
Dia pernah menolak tawaran Bekas Pengurus Machester United Matt Busy yang kagum dengan fizikal Sean untuk menjadi pemain bolasepak
Teruk sangat ke filem AS? - Trump cemuh kemenangan filem Parasite di Anugerah Akademi
Presiden Amerika Syarikat Donald Trump mencemuh Anugerah Akademi atas pengiktirafannya kepada filem Korea Selatan, Parasite sebagai filem terbaik di Oscars.
Malaysia antara 93 negara hantar filem ke Oscar
Malaysia turut menyertai senarai itu dengan filem "M for Malaysia" arahan Ineza Rousille dan Dian Lee.
Tiada siaran anugerah Oscars untuk Asia Pasifik
Oscars ke-91 berdepan pelbagai cabaran di mana individu yang sepatutnya menjadi hos, Kevin Hart, menarik diri susulan kontroversi Tweet beliau sebelum ini yang berbentuk diskriminasi.
Gangguan seksual: Kevin Spacey didakwa lagi, kongsi video 'pelik' di YouTube
Pelakon Kevin Spacey akan didakwa dengan pertuduhan yang dipercayai mempunyai kaitan dengan gangguan seksual.
Filem '2001: A Space Odyssey' kembali dalam format IMAX
Proses pemindahan format filem epik sains fiksyen karya dan arahan Stanley Kubrick itu dibuat bawah pengawasan pengarah tersohor, Christopher Nolan.
Actor Casey Affleck withdraws as 2018 Oscar presenter
Affleck, 42, was expected to present this year's best actress award in keeping with Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences tradition.
#Oscars2016: Lapor Langsung Anugerah Akademi ke-88
Anugerah Akademi atau Oscar ke-88 berlangsung di Dolby Theatre, Los Angeles. Ia akan diacarakan oleh Chris Rock dan menyaksikan perebutan 24 kategori.
Chris Rock bakal sentuh isu #OscarsSoWhite untuk monolog pembukaan
Chris Rock akan tetap menjadi hos walaupun beberapa selebriti bakal boikot acara itu kerana gagal iktiraf pelakon dan pengarah bukan berkulit putih.