We kicked this always-longer-than-intended annual shindig off Monday, when Flyer film writers Greg Akers and Chris Herrington hashed out the screenplay nominations for Sunday’s Oscar awards. Yesterday we took the Animated, Editing, and Cinematography categories by the horns. Today, the back-and-forth swings over to the Supporting Actor and Actress categories.
Best Supporting Actor
Nominees: Christian Bale (The Fighter), John Hawkes (Winter’s Bone), Jeremy Renner (The Town), Mark Ruffalo (The Kids Are All Right), Geoffrey Rush (The King’s Speech).
CHRIS HERRINGTON: Pretty good group of nominees here, really, but as far as who Will Win: It looks like a two-man race between Bale and Rush. Bale’s performance is begging for a statue, but I feel like the ardor (Really? Apparently so.) for The King’s Speech will manifest itself most strongly in the acting categories, so I’m picking Geoffrey Rush. Then again, I’m terrible at predicting this stuff.
Should Win: I have positive feelings for all these performances, even, much to my surprise, Rush, whose turn is less showy and sentimental than I expected. But this is a pretty easy choice for me: John Hawkes as Teardrop in Winter’s Bone. He’s fierce, taciturn, and tough but unexpectedly complicated, and so much of the movie plays out in his eye. But I wouldn’t complain about Ruffalo or Bale winning either.
A little bit of Teardrop, John Hawkes in Winter’s Bone:
