The nominations announcement is, oh, 18 hours away (yeah, we count minutes at this stage). Even though I’m well on the record as being a prognosticative pussy this year, I can’t shake the feeling that we’re in for our share of surprises. I doubt I’m alone.
You can go back over Oscar history and write a whole book on the nominations that blind-sided everyone. Sometimes the contender in question might have popped up briefly during the season, though they were forgotten in due time. Other times, they simply manifested from thin air and smacked Oscar watchers in the face. But they’re always there, lingering, waiting to plant that seed of doubt in the viewer the next year. And the year after that.
It’s enough to pull your hair out.
Earlier today, John posted an interesting thought about Benicio Del Toro’s chances in the lead actor category, which followed a recent musing on Woody Allen’s chances as a lone director nominee. This is the kind of stuff I’m talking about.
So with that in mind, I’ve collected a brief list of four contenders that I legitimately think could pop up tomorrow and join that lineage. Some of them are certainly more plausible than others, but none of them, I feel, are terribly out of bounds. I don’t have the cojones to predict them, of course. But this is what I’m thinking.
(By the way, if I DO happen to change any of my predictions at the last minute tonight, I’ll be sure to offer a post indicating as much.)
My thoughts on the left field…