Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Andy Garfield is a Potential Oscar Nominee...I Think





There are some new pictures from the upcoming film The Social Network, undoubtedly my most anticipated film for the rest of the year, over at /Film. Star Jesse Eisenberg and Disney starlet Brenda Song (who plays Andy's girlfriend, the lucky bitch) appear in a few of them, but I have to share the shots of my boo Andy Garfield, looking good as always. Between this film and Never Let Me Go, these next couple of months are shaping up to be the Autumn of Andy. And because these films are looking like major hits, whether with critics, audiences or both, I'm going out on a limb and making a bold prediction:

Andrew Garfield will be an Oscar nominee come next January.

Why, you ask? I have no real evidence to support this hypothesis; it's just a complete and utter hunch on my part. Here is my reasoning. First of all, he has major roles in both Never Let Me Go and The Social Network. The success of both of these films will hinge, in part, on Andy's performance in each of them. If he's good, he'll definitely be remembered. Oscar definitely responds to actors who have multiple acclaimed performances in the same year (just as long as there isn't category confusion or general confusion as to which performance to back). Secondly, the news that Andy has been cast as the new Spider Man in Marc Webb's upcoming series reboot proves that he's poised to be the Next Big Thing. Don't you think Oscar would want to cash in on that so they can say, "Na na na na boo boo! We discovered him before you!"? Sure, the fact that Andy is a young, attractive male will be a negative in his favor as the conservative group likes their actresses young and perky and their men past middle age and rapidly approaching death. This is why actors like Ben Foster, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Gael Garcia Bernal are nomination-less while Morgan Freeman, Jack Nicholson and Philip Seymour Hoffman have nominations up the wazoo. But, as films like Brokeback Mountain and Half Nelson proved, when a film hits Oscar's sweet spot, they have been known to loosen their "No Hotties Under 30" rule.

I think Andy will have a better chance in the Best Supporting Actor category, as it seems more open to new blood than the Lead category. The question is now which film will get him there? Both roles are borderline lead roles and, depending on the adaptation, a case could be made for either category placement. In Never Let Me Go, he's the male romantic lead, but there's an argument to be made that the story belongs solely to the character Carey Mulligan plays in the film. I just started the book The Social Network is based on (I'm literally 19 pages in) and the story is told through Garfield's character's viewpoint. But, based on what we've heard about Mark Zuckerberg and the film's trailer, it looks like Jesse Eisenberg is the star of the film. My guess is that they'll campaign Andy in both categories, but which film will go where? Never Let Me Go appears to have the best shot at a nomination (based on renowned book, world famous author, "prestige" factor, shot in trailer of Andy screaming his lungs out in anger) but it's also the film that is the hardest to make a case for to downgrade him to supporting. And who knows if director Mark Romanek will be Oscar's cup of tea? David Fincher has already proven capable of rubbing Oscar the right way, but will The Social Network be another Benjamin Button-esque attempt at prestige filmmaking? Lord I hope not, but, if it isn't, Oscar may not bite either. Geez, this is fucking complicated! You can easily talk yourself into thinking one way and then just as easily come up with examples that disprove your theory. That's what you get when you try to figure out Oscar: a headache. But, no matter how convoluted it sounds, I still stand by my hunch that Andy Garfield will get his first Oscar nomination this year.

3 comments:

J.D. said...

Oh, I fucking hope so.

Unknown said...

I think the early reviews of each film lend well to your prediction ;)

RJ said...

Brenda Song looks like a fox in that trailer.