by Larry from The Movie Snob
The nominees for Art Direction range from the wild and warped to the prestigious and serene. There are swirling magical landscapes, expressionistic dreamscapes, the expansive west and esteemed realms of royalty. Art direction does not always recognize the wildest and most bizarre simply because of the noticeable effort or extravagance in the production values. Many times, attention to detail and subtle craft plays a major factor in deciding the art direction winner. Something else that works as an external influence on art direction is the film itself, and the number of other high-toned nominations it has received. Seven of the last ten winners in this category have had their films nominated for either Best Picture or Best Foreign Language film, so the prestige of the picture itself can lean heavy on the decision of the voters.
For Alice in Wonderland, Robert Stromberg and Karen O’Hara create a very Burton-esque world of grand landscapes, surreal images, and deep varying color palettes. The same could be said for Stuart Cragi and Stephenie McMillan on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, only their palette is much darker and more sinister. These two pictures have collected a few technical awards; however they are not contenders in any of the major categories which is a decided disadvantage. And their magical landscapes may also cancel one another out and split the votes.
The remaining three nominees are not only bigger players in the Academy Awards overall, having all been nominated for Best Picture, but I feel they have a better chance at winning Best Art Direction. The first of the three is Jess Gonchor and Nancy Haigh, and the dusty expanse they created in True Grit. Westerns do not typically win art direction. Then again, they aren’t typically nominated, so that recognition alone makes me think True Grit has a chance to win. The odds are still against it, however, as I feel that the category will narrow down to Eve Stewart and Judy Farr’s work on The King’s Speech and Guy Hendrix Dias, Larry Dias, and Doug Mowat for Inception. The latter has some breathtaking sets and postmodern dreamscapes, while the former exists all in reality but has a very deliberate look as well. The Oscar could go to either of these pictures, but I feel like, as I sit here today, the momentum of The King’s Speech will propel it to a win. That is not to say the art direction is not deserving, The King’s Speech is a beautiful and very detailed film, but if I were choosing the Award I may go with Inception because of the very unique creativity of the dream worlds.
