By Nick Jobe of Random Ramblings of a Demented Doorknob.
We’ve been doing this for a few years, so there’s been plenty of history over the Best Adapted Screenplay already given. So I’ll just give you the basics. Simply, a movie can be nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay if the movie has been adapted from a novel, play, short story, TV show, or another movie (thanks Wikipedia!).
Now, I’d go through the list of all past winners and whatnot, but these days, does it really matter? Taste has changed in film, and the dudes at the Academy vote for much different films these days than they might have back in the day. So I just wanna take a look at the last decade of wins before getting into those nominated this year.
2000
Winner: Traffic
Based on: Teleplay
Genre: Crime Drama
Personally, I would have gone with the clever Coen Brothers’ script for O Brother, Where Art Thou? But apparently the Academy didn’t agree. They went with this crime drama instead.
2001
Winner: A Beautiful Mind
Based on: Novel
Genre: Biography Drama
No real opinion one way or the other. This film was total Oscar bait, and the Academy took it.
2002
Winner: The Pianist
Based on: Novel
Genre: Biography Drama
Apparently the Academy likes their Bio-Dramas.
2003
Winner: Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Based on: Novel
Genre: Fantasy
This was totally out of the blue. Between such acclaimed films as City of God and Mystic River, the third film of a fantasy trilogy wins out. Granted, the series was quite a feat, and the film was awesome. But still... a rare win for the fantasy department.
2004
Winner: Sideways
Based on: Novel
Genre: Dramedy
A comedy. Another rare win for this category as of late. The Academy really likes their depressing dramas and crime thrillers, so for a quirky comedy about wine tasting to win is a rare feat indeed.
2005
Winner: Brokeback Mountain
Based on: Short Story
Genre: Western Drama Romance
This movie won for the same reason Sean Penn won for Milk. Don’t get me wrong--I’m all for gay rights. And I’ve yet to see the movie. But you know the movie won more for its subject matter than its actual screenplay.
2006
Winner: The Departed
Based on: Foreign Film
Genre: Crime Thriller
Our second crime film on the list, this film probably won because of its connection to Scorsese than its actual screenplay. Though when it’s up against the likes of Borat, who knows?
2007
Winner: No Country for Old Men
Based on: Novel
Genre: Crime Thriller
This year was a near-total sweep for this film. And boy was this a surprise. In this category, it was up against four depressing Oscar-bait films (Atonement, Away from Her, Diving Bell and the Butterfly, and There Will Be Blood). Yet the crime thriller won. The Academy has really been loving its crime films lately.
2008
Winner: Slumdog Millionaire
Based on: Novel
Genre: Crime Drama
Not a crime drama in the sense of the others on this list, but it does deal heavily with the subject (he is in an interrogation situation for most of the movie, and the bulk of the flashbacks deal with crime). So... yeah.
2009
Nominee: District 9
Based on: Short Story
Genre: Sci-Fi Drama
This is the dark horse of this category. I think if anything is going to beat Precious here, it’ll be this one. I mean, we had the epic fantasy and a gay western won, so why not an alien drama about Apartheid?
Nominee: An Education
Based on: Novel
Genre: Drama
It doesn’t have enough backing to win out over the more popular films on this list. Sure, it has a following, but I doubt it’ll win it.
Nominee: In The Loop
Based on: TV Series
Genre: Comedy
See: An Education. Plus, do “adapted from a teleplay” films ever win? (Yeah, I know, Traffic. But that was so 2000.)
Nominee: Precious
Based on: Novel
Genre: Drama
I’m figuring this is the front runner of this category. It’s a total Oscar-bait film, not to mention that, while it isn’t categorized as a crime drama, it deals with some criminal acts. And we know how our Academy likes its crime films. But I’ve just had this feeling for a while that Precious is gonna sweep the Oscars.
Nominee: Up in the Air
Based on: Novel
Genre: Dramedy
The last dramedy to win was back in 2004. And, in my opinion, it was more drama than comedy, whereas this feels more comedy than drama. I doubt it’ll win based on the past (and on its competitors), but who knows?
Prediction: With its subject matter/genre, and the fact more novels have won than short stories (or anything else), I say Precious for the win, but District 9 for the upset(?). (Here’s to rooting for the latter.)
