If I Were An Academy Voter - 2005 Part II

Best Art Direction
Academy Winner - Memoirs of a Geisha
My Pick - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Commentary - The Harry Potter series deserves something, and the creation of some of the coolest fantasy sets should be enough to gain some recognition from the Academy.

Best Cinematography
Academy Winner - Memoirs of a Geisha
My Pick - Brokeback Mountain
Commentary - Memoirs of a Geisha was beautifully shot, but I would have gone with the Western wilderness of the scenic Brokeback Mountain instead.

Best Costume Design
Academy Winner/My Pick - Memoirs of a Geisha
Commentary - The costumes in Geisha were the best of the bunch, vivid, historical, and a treat for the eyes. Also helped enhance an otherwise eh storyline.

Best Film Editing
Academy Winner/My Pick - Crash
Commentary - The makers of Crash did an excellent job of weaving the various characters together, thanks to an excellent editing job, that gave each main character enough screen time, yet still managed to keep the movie on a zippy pace.

Best Makeup
Academy Winner/My Pick - The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Commentary - In this category, I went with the Academy's pick because I really didn't know. I am a huge Star Wars fan, but was thoroughly disappointed by the last trilogy, so I avoided it, and went with the other fantasy, simple to fill a vote.

Best Original Score
Academy Winner/My Pick - Gustavo Santaolalla "Brokeback Mountain"
Commentary - A great pick for a great score that perfectly captured the different moods of the story.

Best Original Song
Academy Winner - It's Hard Out Here For A Pimp from Hustle & Flow
My Pick - Travelin' Thru from Transamerica
Commentary - I thought it was great that the Academy stepped outside the box with this pick from Hustle & Flow. That being said, I loved Dolly Parton's Travelin Thru, and would have loved to have seen her win that long overdue Oscar.

Best Sound Mixing

Academy Winner/My Pick - King Kong

Commentary - While long, and sometimes redundant, King Kong was a treat for the eyes (see below) and the ears, making intricate sounds in large fight sequences.

Best Sound Editing
Academy Winner/My Pick - King Kong
Commentary - See Above

Best Visual Effects
Academy Winner/My Pick - King Kong
Commentary - Just creating the ape itself was a visual feat, not to mention the rest of the awesome effects in this epic.