Do the Oscars have a British Twang?

Oscar has spoken and the winners pool has been reduced to the lucky few deemed to possess the excellence potentially worthy of a gold statuette. On the 25^th of January, at around lunchtime, actress Mo’Nique and Tom Sherak, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the candidates making the cut. There were some nominations that echoed the Golden Globes held the week before, some snubs from the Academy and some surprise nominations.

The big ones we all guessed: ‘Black Swan,’ ‘The Social Network,’ ‘The King’s Speech,’ ‘Inception’ and ‘The Fighter’ were all expected to be named in the running for Best Picture. Colin Firth, Natalie Portman, Melissa Leo and James Franco all expected to be up for acting nods and Darren Aronofsky and David Fincher up for Best Director, unsurprisingly. The ‘dark horse,’ so to speak, could be in the form of ‘The Kids Are Alright,’ which was well received by the critics when it was released last year.

There is always a discussion, every year, about the how British talent will do at the Oscars. In recent years, Brits, and other non-american talent, has faired well at the academy awards. Two years ago, the Brit film ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ dominated the ceremony, winning 8 out of the 10 awards it was nominated for. Quintessential English rose, Kate Winslet, won Best Actress for ‘The Reader,’ further proving the presence of the British in Hollywood.

‘The King’s Speech’ is Britain’s best bet for success this year come Oscar night. A British film that is so very British. The story of a British Monarch overcoming adversity with a dose of nationalism, it manages to preserve the concieved ‘stiff-upper-lip’ image of the British monarchy whilst subtley exposing an alternative perception of a character in our history that most of us know little about. The stories of the affairs of the Tudor Kings and Queens have been sexed up to the point that they have been removed from history (though tv programmes, books and films about them always do commercially well) though monarchs from modern history are usually distant characters we cannot identify with. In ‘The King’s Speech,’ almost everyone I know identifies with George VI and his challenge to overcome his stammer. We have all had to overcome our own stammer on some level, the British seem to be experts.

Colin Firth is also symbolic in terms of the British presence at the awards. Gentlemanly, sharply dressed and articulate he is what many American’s imagine all British men to be. Firth plays his roles with his own English accent and has resisted offers that result in British actors becoming Americanised, such as Christian Bale, nominated for his role in ‘The Fighter.’ His welsh accent has been diluted heavily, but we can still stake a claim on him. Like Catherine Zeta-Jones before him, I hope for a sudden return to his broad native welsh tones should he win the Oscar. He is 100% British. For Oscar night anyway.

Britons have been recognised beyond what many expected , especially after the stark difference in nominations between the Golden Globes and BAFTAs. There is one snub which I was not expecting. Danny Boyle was noticeably absent from the Best Director category. ‘127 Hours’ was probably a disappointment after the wonderful success of ‘Slumdog Millionaire,’ but Boyle is a talented director that probably deserved recognition in the form of a nomination.

One film that I was surprised got any recognition in the Oscar nominations was the British film ‘Another Year’ by British film maker Mike Leigh. The film has been nominated for two BAFTAs, though surprisingly has been recognised by the American Academy in the form of a nomination for Best Original Screenplay.

Though British talent has been recognised well, there is no denying that the Oscars are dominated by American talent, which makes sense since the awards are handed out on American soil. Darren Aronofsky, in my opinion, deserves Best Director for ‘Black Swan’ and Natalie Portman Best Actress for her potrayal as ballet dancer, Nina Sayers, in the film. Both director and actor have achieved so much already that, should they not win on Oscar night, there’s no doubt they’ll get another invite another time.

Nonetheless, it is always a pleasure to see British filmaking talent being recognised across the pond. The British film industry harbours just as much talent as Hollywood and theres nothing better than seeing British talent match Hollywood on it’s own turf. Whoever said British imperialism was dead?

Fiona Day