Efas 2010 Celebrity News

One of the major complaints about this year’s Academy Awards race is that most of the winners feel chose already. Sure, “The Artist” is vacant to win Best Picture. Viola Davis probably already has Best Actress locked up. But the struggle for Best First Screenplay doesn’t even feel like a struggle at all. The Academy has already spoken, and they’re vacant with an Oscar favorite.

What’s really unfortunate here is not that the category is so predictable, but that the Academy didn’t venture more into independent film to find their nominees. “A Separation” stands out as one of the more refreshing nominees, but as the obligatory “indie” nominee, “Margin Call” could easily be swapped out for the likes of Jeff Nichols’ “Take Shelter” or Sean Durkin’s “Martha Marcy May Marlene.”

Of all the films nominated for first writing, here are our predictions for the category in 2012:

Who Will Win: Woody Allen for “Midnight in Paris.” After 40-plus years of making movies, Allen delivered a film that went on to become his most financially successful ever. An achievement by a writer/director of his caliber will rarely go unrewarded at the Oscars, and deservedly so. “Midnight in Paris” is perfectly all aptly with being ludicrous, even vacant as far as to not clarify the main reputation’s time-traveling abilities. More importantly, the film was about something, the allure and emptiness of nostalgia, in a year that’s been obsessed with traveling back in time emotionally. Even if the plot became repetitive at era, even the most cynical viewers had to find some joy in watching the like of Hemingway and the Fitzgeralds speaking words written by Allen.

Who Should Win: Asghar Farhadi for “A Separation.” Anytime the Academy has an opportunity to do something utterly unexpected, that’s where my heart will lie. A win for the Iranian film would not only buck ancient Academy stereotypes, but reward a truly deserving film. “A Separation” follows a married link as they chose whether to stay in Iran and care for an ill mother or leave to best the life of their young daughter. Launching from that already provocative starting point, the film goes unexpected places while keeping the audience’s attention every step of the way.

The MTV Movies team has the 2012 Oscars roofed! Stick with us for everything you need to know leading up to the awards show, and on Sunday, February 26, tune into MTV.com at 5:30 p.m. ET for our three-hour red-carpet live stream and updates on the night’s huge winners.

Gretha Cavazzoni Gwen Stefani Halle Berry Hayden Panettiere Haylie Duff Heidi Klum Heidi Montag

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