WARNER BROS. – FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION 2014

THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES

Oscar Worthy!

Warner Bros has thrown their hat into the ring for award season consideration with The Hobbit: The Battle of The Five Armies.  And deservedly so as this picture is going to represent nearly two decades of artistic dedication from its director Peter Jackson  beginning with his award-winning Lord of The Rings trilogy and culminating with the highly anticipated final Hobbit film.

Bringing the J.R.R. Tolkien novels to life has become Jackson’s life’s work.  And he has done so with great success. His Lord of the Rings series had somewhat of a love affair with the Academy having garnered 30 Academy Award nominations overall and took home 17 Oscars altogether, a record for any trilogy.  The Return of the King won in every category in which it was nominated, setting an Oscar record for the highest clean- sweep, and its 11 Oscars wins tied the record held by Ben-Hur and Titanic. The Return of the King also became only the second sequel to win the Oscar for Best Picture (after The Godfather Part II) and the first and only fantasy film to receive this honor.

Lord of The Rings Trilogy: 30 Oscar Nods, 17 Wins!

Great accolades indeed…so perhaps lightening shall strike again with the final Hobbit movie. So far the Oscar tally for the first two Hobbit films: The Unexpected Journey and The Desolation of Smaug is three each with no wins. So, I think it’s about time the Academy sat up and took notice of this equally award worthy film series.

Brilliant as Thorin Oakenshield is Oscar worthy Richard Armitage.

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies brings to an epic conclusion the adventures of Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage) and The Dwarves of Erebor who have reclaimed the vast wealth of their homeland, but now must face the consequences of having unleashed the terrifying dragon, Smaug, upon the defenseless men, women and children of Lake-town. As he succumbs to dragon-sickness, the King Under the Mountain, Thorin Oakenshield sacrifices friendship and honor in his search for the legendary arkenstone. Unable to help Thorin see reason, Bilbo is driven to make a desperate and dangerous choice, not knowing that even greater perils lie ahead. An ancient enemy has returned to Middle-earth. Sauron, the Dark Lord, has sent forth legions of Orcs in a stealth attack upon the Lonely Mountain. As darkness converges on their escalating conflict, the races of Dwarves, Elves and Men must decide – unite or be destroyed. Bilbo finds himself fighting for his life and the lives of his friends as five great armies go to war.

I can’t even imagine this film not receiving a slew of nominations and honors come award season. And to help guild members make their decision, Warner Bros has already announced screenings beginning in November with a slate of suggested nominees to consider. And they are:

BEST PICTURE
CAROLYNNE CUNNINGHAM
ZANE WEINER
FRAN WALSH
PETER JACKSON

BEST DIRECTOR
PETER JACKSON

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
FRAN WALSH &
PHILIPPA BOYENS &
PETER JACKSON &
GUILLERMO DEL TORO

BEST ACTOR
MARTIN FREEMAN

For Your Consideration for Best Actor: Martin Freeman

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
IAN McKELLEN
RICHARD ARMITAGE
ORLANDO BLOOM
LEE PACE
LUKE EVANS

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
EVANGELINE LILLY

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
ANDREW LESNIE, ACS, ASC

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
JOE LETTERI
ERIC SAINDON
DAVID CLAYTON
R. CHRISTOPHER WHITE

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Production Designer
DAN HENNAH
Set Decorators
RA VINCENT
SIMON BRIGHT

BEST FILM EDITING
JABEZ OLSSEN

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
RICHARD TAYLOR
BOB BUCK
ANN MASKREY

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
HOWARD SHORE

BEST SOUND EDITING
BRENT BURGE
JASON CANOVAS

BEST SOUND MIXING
Production Sound Mixer
TONY JOHNSON
Re-Recording Mixers
CHRISTOPHER BOYES
MICHAEL HEDGES
MICHAEL SEMANICK

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
DESIGNER
PETER SWORDS KING
MAKEUP AND HAIR SUPERVISOR
RICK FINDLATER
PROSTHETIC SUPERVISOR
GINO ACEVEDO

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
THE LAST GOODBYE
Written by
BILLY BOYD, PHILIPPA BOYENS, and FRAN WALSH
Performed by
BILLY BOYD

Whew! The members of the various guilds certainly have a monumental job on their hands when you consider the immense, and deserving talent in each of this categories.

I wish them ALL the best of luck and here’s to another epic Peter Jackson sweep at the Oscars!

Lady Anglophile…ballot in hand and ready to vote for The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies!