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» THE GAMECOCK ♦ Friday, March 22, 2002 5 ' CONTACT US THEY SAID IT YJUiAirVYJl UU WILSON MIZNER: “The gent-who Story ideas? Questions? Comments? wakes up and finds himself a success E-mail us at gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com hasn’t been asleep.” „ ■ '»■ i . _• - •; • ; , i v THE ACADEMY AWARCS “And the ar» ^Zrelr **** ‘Lord of the Rings’ receives 13 nominations BY BROOK BRISTOW THE uamucock The 74th Academy Awards is coming Sunday night to living rooms across this country. And while we can look forward to the whirlwind of gorgeous people, fabulous clothes, glitzy Oscar af ter-parties and who is going with who, there is so much more to look forward to this year. At a glance, it looks like a toss up between films. “Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” has 13 nominations, “A Beautiful Mind” has eight, “Moulin Rouge” has eight and “Gosford Park” has seven. The usual suspects are also up to the same antics as Ron Howard and Ridley Scott are nominated in the Best Director category. Russell Crowe, Denzel Washington, Will Smith and Sean Penn are up for Best Actor, and Nicole Kidman and Halle Berry are among the nominees for Best Actress. So, as always, Hollywood’s A-list will be in full force to witness the awards cere mony. So what can we expect as view ers of Hollywood’s greatest spec tacle expect? In the Best Picture category. “Lord of the Rings” seems to be weakening after going away with nothing in several guild awards shows. “A Beautiful Mind” seems like a very capable nominee that should take home the statue. “In the Bedroom” and “Gosford Park,” however, are going to be out of their league. WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: “A Beautiful Mind” takes the Oscar and Howard gives a wonderful acceptance speech as Crowe tries to behave himself. WHAT WILL HAPPEN: “Moulin Rouge” will come out of nowhere and steal this one away. It has the spectacle look that Hollywood is known for. Look for the upset. Best Actor is going to be very PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCH Russell Crowe Is a contender for Best Actor for his portrayal of mathematician John Nash in “A Beautiful Mind.” “Gosford Park” is nominated for Best Picture, and its director, Robert Altman, is a nominee for Best Director. PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK tough to call. All of the nominees are so well-known, and this is what an Oscar category should be about. Crowe is the front-runner thanks to his brilliant perfor mance in “A Beautiful Mind.” Penn also has a great shot thanks to his “I Am Sam” performance. Smith, Washington and Tom Wilkinson round out the catego ry WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: Crowe, hands down, should take home the Oscar. WHAT WILL HAPPEN: Thanks to his behavior as of late, the academy won’t want to go with the defending champ Crowe and, instead, will go with either Penn or Washington. Best Actress is an interesting category. Berry from “Monster’s Ball,” Kidman from “Moulin Rouge,” Judi Dench from “Iris,” Renee Zellweger from “Bridget Jones” and Sissy Spacek from “In the Bedroom” are the contenders. While Zellweger was fun to watch, she doesn’t have what Berry and Kidman bring. WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: Nicole wins the statue and makes Tom jealous. WHAT WILL HAPPEN: Nicole wins the statue and makes Tom jealous. Best Director seems like an all star lineup. All of the contenders are very deserving. As always, Howard and Scott are the front runners, and it will come down to them. David Lynch and Robert Altman are out of this one. Peter Jackson could steal it, as “Lord of the Rings” is hoping the rule of percentages will help them take home a little bit of gold. WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: Jackson should win, thus giving “Lord of the Rings” something to show for those 13 nominations of theirs. WHAT WILL HAPPEN: Howard takes home the Oscar as a consolation prize since he won’t win Best Picture. This year’s edition of the Oscars should be entertaining. All categories will give us some dra ma to look forward to, and so will the nominees themselves. Will Crowe throw a hissy fit? Will Nicole taunt Tom from the lectern? As they say in Hollywood, “Stay tuned to find out.” Comments on this story? E-mail gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com OSCAR NIGHT Use The Gamecock’s checklist to choose your favorites, and follow along during Sunday night’s ceremonies. The 74th annual Academy Awards begins at 8 p.m. and will be broadcast on ABC. BEST PICTURE □ “A Beautiful Mind” □ "Gosford Park” □ “In The Bedroom" □ “Moulin Rouge" □ “Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” BEST DIRECTOR □ Robert Altman, “Gosford Park” □ Ron Howard, “A Beautiful Mind” □ Peter Jackson, “LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring" □ David Lynch, “Mulholland Drive” □ Ridley Scott, “Black Hawk Down” BEST ACTOR □ Russell Crowe, “A Beautiful Mind” □ Sean Penn, “I Am Sam” □ Will Smith, “Ali” □ Denzel Washington, "Training Day” □ Tom Wilkinson, “In the Bedroom" BEST ACTRESS □ Halle Berry, “Monster's Ball" □ Judi Dench, “Iris” □ Nicole Kidman, “Moulin Rouge” □ Sissy Spacek, “In the Bedroom” □ Renee Zellweger, “Bridget Jones’ Diary” BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR □ Jim Broadbent “Iris’ □ Ethan Hawke, “Training Day” □ Ben Kingsley, “Sexy Beast” □ Ian McKellen, “LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring" □ Jon Voight, “Ali” BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS □ Jennifer Connelly, “A Beautiful Mind” □ Helen Mirren, “Gosford Park” □ Maggie Smith, "Gosford Park" □ MarisaTomei, “In the Bedroom" □ Kate Winslet, “Iris" GRAPHIC BY MARTHA WRIGHT Academy honors black actors Berry, Smith, Washington up for lead-acting awards BY DAVID GERMAIN THE ASSOCIATED PRESS LOS ANGELES - Halle Berry hopes this year’s three Academy Award nominations for black actors will be a source of optimism for minorities. Denzel Washington just figures academy voters went for the actors they felt turned in the best performances. And Will Smith jokes that win or lose, he’s already made history: “The first rapper to be nominated for an Oscar. That is cool.” This year’s awards present one of the best chances for a black to earn a lead-acting trophy since Sidney Poitier became the only black actor to do so, for 1963’s “Lilies of the Field.” Oscar nominations for Berry (“Monster’s Ball”), Smith (“Ali”) and Washington PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK Will Smith’s starring role in “All” earned him a nomination for Best Actor. (“Training Day”) mark the first time in 29 years that three blacks have competed in the lead-acting categories. Best Actress may come down to Sissy Spacek for “In the Bedroom” and Berry, who won the lead-actress prize for “Monster’s Ball” this month at the Screen Actors Guild Awards. The best-actor race seems to be a dead heat between Russell Crowe for “A Beautiful Mind” and Washington, a five-time nominee who won the supporting-actor Oscar for “Glory.” In addition, two Oscar winning black actors have major roles at the ceremony Sunday. Poitier receives an i' honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement. And Whoopi Goldberg, a supporting-actress winner for “Ghost,” is the show’s host. Only six blacks have won acting Oscars since the awards began in 1929, or 2.2 percent of the winners. The only previous year that produced three black nominees for best actor or actress was 1972: Cicely Tyson and Paul Winfield for “Sounder” and Diana Ross for “Lady Sings the Blues.” “When it happened in 1972,1 bet you someone probably said this is a prelude of better things to come, and we found it hasn’t happened again for almost 30 years,” said Frank Smith Jr., acting board president of the Black Filmmakers Hall'of Fame. Still, many in Hollywood view this year’s nominations as a hint that choicer roles are opening up for blacks in an industry that once relegated minorities largely to comic or caricatured parts. Of 39 nominations for blacks ♦ OSCARS, SEE PAGE 6 PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK Halle Berry is a nominee for Best Actress for her performance in “Monster's Ball.’’ CP puts spin on Oscars USC will hold Oscar Party in Russell House Ballroom BY ASHLEY VAUGHAN THE GAMECOCK Looking for a chance to perform the acceptance speech you’ve been practicing in the mirror since the first time you watched the Academy Awards? Well, Carolina Productions has planned a night just for you. USC’s own Oscar Party will be held Sunday night in the Russell House Ballroom. Celebrities are not the only ones who will have the opportunity to win awards. CP, with the help of donations from ♦ CP PARTY, SEE PAGE 7 I