The Oscars 2014 - My Predictions (Just for Fun)

Each year the Oscar nominations manage to surprise me, and 2014 has been no exception. Perhaps the biggest shock for me was the fact that Tom Hanks was snubbed from both acting categories even though it's been a brilliant year for him – Not cool guys!

Overall I thing American Hustle has the best chance for nabbing the most awards on the night however Gravity is running a close second.

For The past three years I have not been wrong with my main category predictions; however I think this year is too tight... and so regrettably I have removed myself from any bets that could have stood. I’ve still put my guesses down below so feel free to check them out and tell me what you think J

Best Picture.

Who I think will win: 12 Years a Slave –An emotional masterpiece... and that is all I have to back up my choice.

Who could win: American Hustle – I liked this movie so much it has sneaked into my top twenty films of all time... but I’m afraid that 12 Years a Slave might just have the edge in this category.

Who I think deserves to win: 12 Years a Slave

 

Best Director.

Who I think will win: Alfonso Cuaron (Gravity) – I was pleasantly surprised when i watched this movie, I didn’t think I would enjoy It, and the reason that I think I did was down to Cuaron’s phenomenal directing.

Who could win: David O’ Russell (American Hustle).  

Who I think deserves to win: Steve McQueen (12 Years a Slave).

 

Best Actor.

Who I think will win: Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club) – As much as I want it to be Leo, I think McConaughey’s turn as ‘Ron Woodroof’ is more what the Academy is looking for in a winner L

Who could win: Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave).

Who I think deserves to win: Leonardo DiCaprio (The Wolf of Wall Street) – see why I think this here.

 

Best Actress.

Who I think will win: Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine).

Who could win: Sandra Bullock (Gravity) -  Gravity was phenomenal, and Bullock's character was very different from the roles we normally see her take up.

Who I think deserves to win: Amy Adams (American Hustle) – It’s incredible how versatile Amy Adams is, and her role in American Hustle was one of my favourites.

 

Best Supporting Actor.

Who I think will win: Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club) –It will happen, we all know it will...not even going to argue this one.

Who could win: Bradley Cooper (American Hustle) – Even if it’s just for that perm...

Who I think deserves to win: Michael Fassbender (12 Years a Slave) – I’m a huge Fassbender fan and I think he stood out from the crowd in 12 years.

 

Best Supporting Actress.

Who I think will win: Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave) – Her performance was fantastic and she is drop dead gorgeous...what else do you need to know?

Who could win: Jennifer Lawrence (American Hustle) – this would be awesome if it happened, two Oscars in two years is a rare occurrence...however it would not do any favours in taming my major J-Law girl crush :/

Who I think deserves to win: Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave) – Lupita is definitely one of the breakthrough actresses of this year...

 

Best Original Screenplay.

Who I think will win: American Hustle.

Who could win: Her.

Who I think deserves to win: American Hustle.

 

Best Adapted Screenplay.

Who I think will win: 12 Years a Slave.

Who could win: The Wolf of Wall Street – having read the book, it’s not especially accurate...however it is a hilariously brilliant movie so not all hope is lost!

Who I think deserves to win: 12 Years a Slave.

 

 

 

I also decided to have a bit of a guess at the other categories J

 

 

 

Best Hair and Make-up.

Who I think will win: Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa.

 

Best foreign language film.

Who I think will win: I literally have no idea...haven’t seen any of them (yes I know I’m a failure).

 

Best Documentary.

Who I think will win: The Act of Killing.

 

Best Animated Feature.

Who I think will win: Frozen.

 

Best Cinematography.

Who I think will win: Gravity.

 

Best Film Editing.

Who I think will win: Gravity.

 

Best Production Design.

Who I think will win: The Great Gatsby.

 

Best Costume Design.

Who I think will win: I can’t decide between The Great Gatsby and American Hustle... again I have failed.

 

Best Original Score.

Who I think will win: Gravity (Steven Price)

It is a CRIME that they weren’t nominated: 12 Years a Slave (Hans Zimmer)

 

Best Original Song.

Who I think will win: Frozen (Let It Go) – although I think that Despicable Me 2 (Happy) is a much catchier tune ;)

 

I don’t actually care about the short films so I’m not even going to bother guessing...

 

Best Sound Editing.

Who I think will win: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug- Purely because of Benedict Cumberbatch... I’m not going to lie to you guys.

 

Best Sound Mixing.

Who I think will win: Gravity.

 

Best Visual Effects.

Who I think will win: The Hobbit... but I do admire the lens flares in Star Trek ;)

Peter Capaldi Costume Reveal - My Thoughts.

No matter how good or bad, each Doctor has had their own individual and easily recognised style; from Tom Baker’s fabulous (If slightly too long) scarf or David Tennant’s pinstriped suit,  all the way to Matt Smith’s unarguably ‘cool’ bow tie. Indeed, none of them have had a wardrobe that could be easily translated into everyday fashion but that is all part of the novelty. As my flatmate Emma mentioned, this is what makes it easy to spot the Whovians in a Comic Con crowd... but with Capaldi we have something different.

Photo courtesy of the BBC.

 If you tried to cosplay this outfit, people would assume that you hadn’t bothered to dress up until they saw the Sonic Screwdriver tightly in your grasp. It’s something that is (no offence) associated with a younger , slightly hipster, generation (my brother would wear something similar- and probably pull off equally as badly), and don’t get me wrong it is a well constructed outfit; it just doesn’t have anything to make it special.

 It’s not great and it’s not terrible – it’s just hanging in the void.

I still to this day get a bit excited when I see someone wearing a pinstriped suit, and I often have to stop myself shouting “bow ties are cool” at random people on the street... but what am I supposed to do with twelve’s outfit? “Oh you’re wearing a nice coat...”? And even that’s kind of Sherlock’s thing!

My problem is the more I look at this photograph, the more things I can find in it that I don’t like. The buttoned up shirt without any kind of neck attire, along with the drop crotch trousers just screams mid-life crisis- As I said before, my 16 year old brother would still look a bit of a twat wearing this combination. Just give Capaldi a top hat and he looks like a circus ringleader (a resemblance that my other flatmate – another Emma, yes it’s confusing but you’ll get over it – noticed immediately, and it’s quite an apt comparison).

Yes the red lining of the coat adds a bit of flair, and slightly echoes Jon Pertwee’s costume, but that is the only thing that really stands out...nothing ‘pops’. I’m actually a fan of the coat, it’s practical and quite dapper, however the fact that he’s fastened the top button instead of the middle one is bugging my OCD – and that’s not ok.

The shiny Dr Marten boots are also very attractive, but again, they are more associated with younger people. I know it seems that I’m targeting Capaldi’s age but I’m not! I wanted an older Doctor and I honestly think that Capaldi will be fantastic in the role... it’s just pieces of his outfit don’t seem to be age appropriate.

One aspect of the look that I am all for though, is the cardigan... and I literally have nothing to back that up with other than I think he will look adorable in a cardigan (very well thought out there Charlotte!).

Capaldi did mention in an interview that they were going “back to basics” with the costume, and I believe that’s a clever choice – It’s the start of a new cycle for The Doctor, but this is too basic... too boring. With an assistant like Clara, who has a beautiful and reasonably quirky fashion sense, The Doctor needs something to make sure he is the focus of the scene, and his outfit is a key part of that.

Hopefully it will be all in the props, and Moffat is yet to reveal something fantastic (If I have learnt anything, it’s never to underestimate the power of The Moff)I’m hanging in hope of something awesome... but I have to say that for now I am left quite disappointed.

Why Leonardo DiCaprio should win Best Actor at this year's Oscars.

As you can see, today's blog posts have had a running theme and I thought that I should round everything off by discussing why Leo deserves to win at this year's Academy Awards.

Performance wise, Leonardo DiCaprio's turn in 'The Wolf of Wall Street' is undoubtedly one of his best. It displayed a darker and louder side to Leo that many of us have never seen before whilst also echoing the comic cheek that was present in 'Catch Me if You Can'. The originality of his performance is astounding, and even for those who didn't like the film, all admired how far the star went and how much effort he put in scene after debaucherous scene.

DiCaprio contributed significantly to the film itself; along with co-producing TWOWS, he was the one who persuaded Scorsese to include Matthew McConaughey's chest thumping vocal preparations, a scene that ended up being one of the most memorable in the movie.

On a slightly more audacious note, I assume that Oscar voters can relate. Yes they may be old and seemingly out of touch but I bet you 80% of them 'enjoyed' the sixties and seventies in a similarly carefree fashion to Jordan Belfort himself. Also the demographics of these voters show that the committee is overwhelming male dominated and lets just say that I doubt any of them were disgusted by the display of nudity in TWOWS.

Another thing to take note of is that unfortunately I doubt that TWOWS will win in any other high profile category and so DiCaprio's Best Actor nod may be the Academy's only chance of recognising the film for it's merits.

Not to be ignored is that Leonardo DiCaprio is genuinely a down-to-earth good guy... yes that won't give him any advantage when it comes to his merits as an actor but I implore you all to look at his work as an environmental activist, we need more celebrities like him in the world.

One problem is that Leo has been snubbed for better performances, Inception and Titanic being ones that stood out for me. This year's nominations mark DiCaprio's fifth time receiving Oscar nods, and let us not forget that Kate Winslet was nominated five times before finally winning on her sixth for 'The Reader'.
Another is that although I have given reasons why Leo's acting is deserved of an Oscar, you can turn the tables on the very same examples; his performance may be just a bit too loud this year especially when you look at the performances of the actors in the Best Actor category.

The Best Actor category is very tight this year, but fingers crossed  Leo's exceptional performance will finally be rewarded with an Oscar :)

Nudity In Films - Is it acceptable?

I recently uploaded my thoughts on the new Scorsese film 'The Wolf of Wall Street'- Fantastic film and highly recommended for those who don't mind a bit of sleaze- and naturally afterwards I discussed it with my flatmates. They were divided in their opinions, however the cause for a lot of criticism came from the frequent nudity that the movie displays.

So I put forward this question; When is nudity acceptable in cinema?

Now here's where the problems start to arise, when there is an absence of clothing in a movie it is 99.9% likely that it is going to be a woman who gets her kit off, and is that OK?
...I'm not sure.

I believe that female nudity in cinema can be justified, for example, if she would have got naked in real life to do a certain activity that she is rein-acting on film then for me it's actually annoying when a bra is conveniently left on. The thing is that in the same scenario a man should be naked too, and all too often a sheet is choreographed in to cover his intimate areas while the woman's breasts are on full display.

Nudity for the sake of nudity is wrong, if a woman is in a scene just so she can take her clothes off- and her purpose is to be nothing more than a sexual object- then it is shameful.

Audience is key when it comes to this issue, and it is also where a lot of people can slap down the feminism card. When making a movie you have to understand what the audience wants- male, female, young and old all want different things and it would be impossible to make money by pleasing everyone.

To put it into perspective I shall use myself as a case study. If there was a naked woman on screen I am less likely to cringe or look away than if there was a full frontal shot of a man. For me neither of these images are attractive, but I can bet you that a man would have exactly the same reaction with the only difference that he is seeing the female form as a desirable object.
Film directors exploit and sell this. I don't mind seeing a naked woman, not because I am attracted to her, but because I am used to it.

Social conditioning has integrated the idea into our minds that it is less shocking to see a woman without clothes than a man. The Sun newspaper has page three models topless for the world to see in order to cater for the male readers, but a key difference is that a topless man is not shocking, just because their chest area is less voluptuous. If you were to put a fully naked man on page three however, I am sure complaints would be in the thousands.

I know it's not right, and it probably won't change any time soon. So for now prudes will be prudes and various industries will continue to tread the fine line of the naked body being displayed as art or porn.

The Wolf Of Wall Street - My Thoughts.

With five Academy Award nominations under its belt it would be foolish to say that The Wolf of Wall Street is a bad film, and it's certainly not. Yes it's a film about bad things, but truthfully that is what makes it so fantastic. Doused in controversy by critics and cinema goers alike over its content of sex, drugs and recurrent nudity, TWOWS has made watching films exciting again. I'm not going to say that I don't enjoy a good historical drama, because I do, and I think movies like 12 Years a Slave are viscerally gripping masterpieces; however sometimes I yearn for something different, something that will leave my shocked but unable to look away... something like Leonardo DiCaprio's naked bottom.

With a total 180 minute runtime, TWOWS is not for the faint hearted (or weak bladdered; I suggest that you skip the extortionately priced cinema drinks this time). For the most part it is a fast paced, beautifully constructed film, however with around 40 minutes left to go it does become a bit taxing and it is likely that you won't be able to feel you legs by the time the credits roll- and that's without the Quaaludes!

There is no question that the casting for TWOWS was perfect. DiCaprio does an excellent job of portraying stockbroker Jordan Belfort- a loud performance that is undoubtedly one of his best to date, well deserved of multiple best actor nods by various awards committees. The supporting cast also offer a chorus of hilarity and intrigue, standing apart from the crowd; Jonah Hill shines as a  faithful acolyte and newcomer Margot Robbie's turn as Belfort's trophy wife was surprisingly refreshing.

As usual Scorsese has jumped the line of political correctness. TWOWS glamourizes Belfort's indulgent and reckless drug and money fuelled lifestyle, making it look fun and desirable. However at the same time I found that throughout the movie Scorsese is treating the audience like adults and pushing a dark comical tone that different from the rest of his films.

Throughout TWOWS you are torn between whether to laugh or cringe and look away while a nude marching band invades the screen, an aptly named 'stripper stampede' charges into view or when a dwarf soars towards you - but this is all part of the experience, you don't know what to expect!!

It sells us the sleaze and the cringeworthy moments (and sure it sells us hard) and is on the whole, ultimately ridiculous. Structurally it is essentially and American rise-and-fall story, it doesn't follow stereotypes and in no way pays out how you would expect it would...and that's what makes The Wolf of Wall Street so brilliant.

DIY Manicure- Quick, Easy and Most Importantly Cheap!

You will need: 2 Cotton buds (Q-Tips), Petroleum Jelly, Nail polish remover, Base/ top coat, White nail polish and a Nail art pen.

Use a Cotton bud to spread the Petroleum Jelly around the edges of your nails- This will make any Nail polish that goes onto your skin easy to remove.

 

 

Paint your nails with the Base/top coat.

After the Base coat is dry, paint your nails with two layers of White Nail polish.

When the white is dry, paint your desired design with the Nail Art pens.

Secure with a Top coat and clean up the sides of your nails with a second Cotton bud and some Nail polish remover.

Easy peasy lemon squeezy!!
Hope You enjoyed this post :)


Products Used:
Vaseline, Superdrug Nail Polish Remover, Miss Sporty Base and Top Coat, Maybelline Color Show (Winter Baby), Primark Nail Art Pen.
 

Maybelline New York Color Show- Winter Baby

It is universally known that I cannot go into a drug store such as Superdrug or Boots without buying at least one item of makeup. Each time I’ll utter the same words: I’m just going to browse the makeup aisle”... When I say “Browse” I really mean “find something that I didn’t know I needed but now do”.

On this occasion I noticed that I didn’t own any white nail polish and therefore I clearly had to buy some in order to fill the gap in my collection.

I ended up choosing from the Maybelline New York, Color Show range- their whitest shade being ‘Winter Baby’ (If my career in journalism fails I’d love to be the person who names the makeup colours).

At £2.99 for a 7ml bottle this nail polish is pretty cheap, and for my frugal student brain anything under a fiver is a bargain.

I was drawn to the simple yet attractive packaging- seeing all of the different colours lined up on the shelf made it really difficult not to buy all of them and then not eat for a few days.

The application brush is nothing special, a standard shape; however I did like how far apart the bristles spread when applying the product to my nails as it allowed me to cover the whole nail in one stroke. (NOTE: I do have quite small nails so this may not be the case for everyone.

Speaking of application, I don’t know if this was down to the fault of the brush, or the consistency of the polish, but I did find that when applying the first coat it did leave quite a few streaks- This was solved with a second coat, however I was a bit worried to begin with.

 

The colour is quite sheer on initial application but the quick drying time (two- five minutes) allows for additional layers to be applied easily. It took me about three coats to get the colour that I wanted.

When dry ‘Winter Baby’ left a beautiful shiny finish on the nail which looked very professional, but I did have a few issues with the durability of the polish. Any bump or knock, even after ten minutes of drying each layer, seemed to chip or dent the polish- not practical at all if you are an incredibly clumsy uni student who is always on the go like me.

 

Because of the price my expectations weren’t that high to begin with. I think that my problems with this range are only limited to this one colour as I have tried several other Color Show polishes and they are fine. If you want a cheap white nail polish, you don’t mind the extra effort and your day isn’t going to be very ‘hands on’, then this is perfect for you.

Obligatory First Post.

 I'm sure that this blog's description has captivated you enough, but as always there has to be a post to get the ball rolling...so here it is.

The last thing that I need is ANOTHER platform to talk loudly at anyone who'll listen, but hey ho I've got one now. I'm not going to lie and tell you that I have any plan for this blog- it's clearly going to end up consisting of anything that pops into my head when I happen to be bored. Expect reviews of movies, make-up and random musings, also don't throw away the chance of a few stories.

I suppose the only polite thing to do is to share a little about myself;

THIS IS ME!!!

• I'm a Journalism student, I write stuff...
• Although I don't support any particular political party, I am a republican (keep note of that small 'r')
• I once ate 12 doughnuts in the space of an hour.
• There is no sport in existence that I am even remotely good at, unless sarcasm is a sport...
• I'm hilarious.
• I'm an awesome daydreamer.
• My favourite film is The Dark Knight.
• I read actual books and newspapers- which is surprising because apparently nobody under he age of 40 does that anymore.

OK so I think you get the idea, I'm pretty uninteresting but I'll let you guys decide.
Please feel free to comment and add suggestions on this page just so I can cater my posts to any audience that I may eventually have.

See Ya :)