Predictions: Who Should Get a Best Actor Nomination in 2013?

2012's Best Actor winner Jean Dujardin (The Artist)

We are in an exciting time for Oscar enthusiasts. We are officially one week away from the announcement of this year's nominees. In order to contribute some thoughts, I will be going down the major categories (Acting, Directing, and Best Picture) and predicting who will be the most likely to get nominated, as well as a few tidbits on why I agree with these decisions. Be warned that every story that I am going to write in relation to predictions will not actually feature any bias towards who should win. However, I will be detailing why I think each should be nominated. Also stay tuned for post-coverage in which I will actually be sharing my thoughts on the nominations and solidify who I believe should win in each category.

Review: "Lincoln" is More Accurate than Entertaining

Daniel Day Lewis

Now that director Steven Spielberg's Lincoln has been put out to wide release, it is an easy time to ponder just how much of a chance that it has at the Oscars this year. Is Daniel Day Lewis' portrayal of the president an enthralling, engaging performance worthy of leading him to a third Oscar win? Is Spielberg capable of adding another directorial statue to his resume? In many ways, Lincoln is an accurate, well filmed biopic of the beloved president. However, despite all of the glowing cinematography and great as usual Lewis performance, Lincoln just feels like another film about Abraham Lincoln.

Will John Hawkes Keep the Academy's Love of Disabilities in the Best Actor Race?

John Hawkes

This Friday sees the release of the Sundance breakout hit, director Ben Lewin's The Sessions. Starring John Hawkes as a man in an iron lung, the story follows his journey on a quest to lose his virginity at 36. With the help of a sex therapist (Helen Hunt), the movie sounds like a farce of sorts. With Hawkes acting predominantly with his head attached to a stretcher, is it possible for this film to get some traction at the Oscars, or will it just be a sympathy grab for the disabled protagonist?

"Lincoln" Officially Joins the Oscar Race with Trailer #2

Daniel Day Lewis

*UPDATE: A review has been posted here.

As I reported a few weeks back when the original teaser trailer for director Steven Spielberg's Lincoln premiered, I was convinced that this was going to be a hard sell. The trailer looked almost like a Civil War equivalence of the heart-string tugging War Horse, which has been a sign of Spielberg choosing sentimentality over narration. I expected this to be the case after that trailer made the rounds. However, upon the release of a new trailer, it may be time for reconsideration for every field possible.