BEST DIRECTOR
Updated: 5/26
Top Five Contenders
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| 1. Peter Weir (The Way Back) | 2. Christopher Nolan (Inception) | 3. Terrence Malick (The Tree of Life) | 4. David O'Russell (The Fighter) | 5. Julian Schnabel (Miral) |
| With four nominations and no win, dating back to the mid '80s, Peter Weir is the most overdue living director. He only does one film every few years or so, but they're always great. So I'm hoping he can finally win for this drama and get what he deserved for Dead Poets Society and The Truman Show. | It was so horribly devastating to me as well as many others when Nolan failed to get nominated for The Dark Knight two years ago. Maybe the Academy feels bad and they'll give him a makeup nomination for this original film, unless it's still too sci-fi for their taste. | Some say Malick should have won for The Thin Red Line. I suppose it's possible for him to win this year if this film is as big as the hype. Though I haven't been a big fan of Malick films due to their long drawn out style and practically a complete lack of dialogue. | The director of Three Kings and I Heart Huckabees could get his first nomination for this drama about a famous Irish boxer. There is however some stigma against him in Hollywood about his relationship with past actors. Since actors are a large voting block, that could hurt him. | Schnabel is a prior nominee for The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. He certainly has a unique style, so it's possible for him to get nominated again certainly. Here he directs a film set in 1948 Jerusalem. Period Jewish themed films always fancy the Academy's taste. |
Close Behind
| 6. Darron Aronofsky (Black Swan) | 7. Clint Eastwood (Hereafter) | 8. David Fincher (The Social Network) | 9. Danny Boyle (127 Hours) | 10. Joel and Ethan Coen (True Grit) |
| Aronofsky came close to getting nominated a couple of times for Requiem for a Dream and The Wrestler. I could see him finally getting his first nomination this year for this competitive ballet drama. Drugs, wrestling, ballet... You can't say Aronofsky doesn't branch out. | Eastwood has been a contender every year for five of the last seven years and I fear the Academy has developed Clint fatigue. He didn't get actor nominated for Gran Torino and Invictus failed to make the picture top ten. So it will be hard for him to get nominated this year. | Fincher follows up his first nomination for Benjamin Button with this unique drama about the founding of facebook. It's strange to see a film that is so relevant with something so modern. Curious to see how the Academy will treat such a topic. Fincher is a strong possibility for it though. | The winner from two years ago follows up Slumdog Millionaire with this drama about that guy who cut off his own arm that was trapped under a boulder a couple years ago. Sounds like it will sort of be like a one man solitude drama like Cast Away. I think it could work. | I have a love/hate relationship with Joel and Ethan. I loved The Big Lebowski, hated A Serious Man, and everything else fell somewhere inbetween. But I have high hopes for this remake of the classic John Wayne Western. Plus they're directing The Dude again! |
My Original Predix
| Weir | Nolan | Malick | O'Russell | Schnabel |