Member Post by Apostolos Gkanas
Series: Members of Films and Books vote their picks for the 84th Annual Academy Awards

Being asked to vote for the Academy awards 2012, I was really tempted to cast away my votes on the popular or most expected to win nominees. Luckily, I found the courage to step outside the lines and vote from the heart.
As far as the best picture award is concerned, I might disappoint a lot of readers by voting for Midnight in Paris. Apart from a beautiful cart-postal of contemporary Paris, Woody Allen managed to give us a look at Paris at its best.

Furthermore, a lot of people must have felt the need to get out of the everyday misery and walk among the bohemian air of the writers' club. For the same reason, I would like it to also have the Screenplay Award. Just because I would love to be able to time travel, just by wandering through Paris. So, no blockbuster for me in this category.
Disappointingly, I cannot say that I would vote for the same movie as far as directing is concerned. Woody Allen has made such great films, like Manhattan, Annie Hall, Match Point that the comparison is unfair. He is actually losing the Award to himself. So in this category, I give my vote to the Tree of Life, directed by Terrence Malick. A movie, that provided that you are well rested, with a clear head can enter your imagination and scar it forever. The complexity of the pictures was a mix of David Lynch, Stanley Kubrick and Lars von Trier. I really enjoy watching movies that when the lights are on I just whisper "Wow. What did I just watch". It is the purpose of the picture to provide us with stimulation out of our everyday lives.
For the same reason, I would like Hugo, by Martin Scorsese to be awarded with the Best Visual Effects award. It was bliss to the eyes.
For the Best Actor I have to go with Gary Oldman. From Leon to JFK, from Dracula to The Scarlet Letter, the man's performances are shouting for recognition. Balance will be restored in the universe or at least in Hollywood if he takes it from the hands of the good actors, but better models, George Clooney and Brad Pitt. In Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Oldman managed to become one with the character as described by John Le Carre.
Not really excited over the Best Actress, I'll have to go with Meryl Streep because it is about freakin time. Maybe for the same reasons with Gary Oldman, but in her case I also have the feeling that if she doesn't get it this year she isn't going to get it ever.
Finally, to cheer this text up, I would like to cast a vote for Best Animated Feature film to Rango. First of all because it was like really seeing Johny Depp into this chameleon, and secondly because I enjoyed the surreal screenplay, not very common in animations, at least in the western world. There is always Japan though if you are looking for animated madness.
 
 
About me
I was born in '82, in Athens, Greece. Studied Computer networking and Advanced Information Systems. I have worked in local and national newspapers as a columnist. For the last two years, I have been fighting a rare kind of bone cancer, Ewing's sarcoma. I am ok.