Steven Zeitchik, blogger for the Risky Biz Blog has blogged that Disney/Pixar’s Wall-E is a strong contender for a Best Picture nod from the academy.
“Ever since the best ani category was created seven years ago, the conventional wisdom is that no movie eligible for the category will ever work its way into the best picture race. (“Beauty and the Beast” was nommed, but that was in 1991, long before a separate category was created that siphoned off best pic votes.)
But Wall-E is getting serious critical acclaim, not to mention pop-cultural cachet, as film editor Gregg Kilday notes in his recent story.
And while predicting Oscars in June is like predicting a World Series winner in February, this may in fact be the year that the Pixar set crashes the party.
People forecast that every year, you say? They said it with Ratatouille last year? Sure. But 2008 is different. Last year at this time Cannes had already offered a few frontrunners like “No Country,” which wound up landing best pic. This year there are no obvious candidates so far (we’re still not anywhere near sold on “Changeling”). ”
He went on to say,
“What’s more, as well-reviewed as it was, “Ratatouille” trails even “Wall-E” when it comes to a critical Q rating; at 96% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s one tick higher than that film (and also higher than any best picture winner in nearly a decade).”
Nikki Finke of Deadline Hollywood Daily wrote, “I’m told that Disney and Pixar are going to push hard for a Best Picture Oscar nomination for Wall-E on the basis of its anti-toon moody darkness and rave reviews by critics who matter. Certainly many toons have tried for that high honor over the years, and then settled for “just” a recently added Best Animated Feature nod. Only one animated movie has made it into the most competitive Academy Award category — Disney’s Beauty And The Beast in 1991 — but, alas, didn’t win. But that may not be the obstacle in Wall-E‘s way.”
And from the Pixar Blog, “New York Magazine’s Vulture blog has published a post suggesting WALL-E should be nominated for Best Picture at the upcoming Academy Awards*.
So the buzz begins! Oscar! Oscar! Oscar!”
Sources:
The Pixar Blog
NYMag.com
The Hollywood Deadline Daily
The Risky Biz Blog