Irish face stiff competition on Oscars night

[caption id="attachment_69893" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Rooney Mara in the “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.”"]

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Hollywood’s 84th Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles on Sunday night will have no shortage of Irish talent on hand to celebrate their nominations, and possibly, their wins.

Irish-American film stars George Clooney and Rooney Mara are up for Best Actor and Actress honors for their roles in the family drama “The Descendants” and the thriller “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” respectively. Meanwhile Ireland has two up for consideration in the Best Live-Action Short Film category.

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Clooney’s biggest competition seems to be French actor Jean Dujardin, who has been saying “merci” all season for awards he’s picked up for his performance in “The Artist,” a black-and-white valentine to cinema’s silent film era. Also mentioned in the Best Actor category are Demian Bichir from the aptly named "A Better Life," Gary Oldman from the slow-boil thriller "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" and Brad Pitt from the baseball picture "Moneyball."

Although Mara has earned rave reviews for her breakout performance as a brilliant, antisocial private investigator, most of the Best Actress accolades this awards season have been divided between Rooney’s competitors from Hollywood Meryl Streep for “The Iron Lady” and Viola Davis for “The Help.”

American legend Glenn Close and British star Janet McTeer were recognized with Best Actress and Supporting Actress nominations for their portrayal of women living and working as men in “Albert Nobbs.” Competing with McTeer for the golden statuette are Melissa McCarthy from the outrageous big-screen comedy “Bridesmaids,” Berenice Bejo from "The Artist" and Jessica Chastain from the American civil-rights-era drama "The Help." Octavia Spencer from “The Help” has been trumping the gals all season, however, and is considered a shoe-in at the Oscars.

Northern Irish actor Kenneth Branagh is nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category for his portrayal of Sir Laurence Olivier in “My Week with Marilyn,” a charming real-life fairytale that also earned America’s Michelle Williams a Best Actress nod for her depiction of screen goddess Marilyn Monroe. Branagh has been bested at previous awards shows by Canadian actor Christopher Plummer, who is wowing crowds with his portrayal of a senior citizen who finally embraces his homosexuality in “Beginners.” Also nominated are Jonah Hill for "Moneyball," Nick Nolte for the fraternal, mixed martial arts picture "Warrior" and Max von Sydow for the 9/11-themed drama “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close.”

“Pentecost” and “The Short” are the two entries from Ireland vying to win the Oscar for Best Live-Action Short Film. Written and directed by the film and TV actor Peter McDonald, “Pentecost” is about an altar boy forced to decide whether to conform to the status quo and help out at an important Mass or serve an extended ban from his passion in life, football. Terry George’s “The Shore” stars Ciaran Hinds, Kerry Condon, Conleth Hill and Maggie Cronin. It is about two boyhood friends who reunite after being divided for 25 years by the tumult of the Troubles. The short films will compete with Raju by Max Zahle and Stefan Gieren, "Time Freak" by Andrew Bowler and Gigi Causey, and "Tuba Atlantic" by Hallvar Witzo.

The nominees for Best Picture are “The Artist,” “The Descendants,” “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close,” “The Help,” “Hugo,” “Midnight in Paris,” “Moneyball,” “The Tree of Life” and “War Horse.”

 

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