Hollywood Contenders – The shortlist for Best Visual Effects at the Oscars has arrived

Yesterday, the Academy Award hopefuls in Best Visual Effects were whittled down to just 20, as voters can now focus in on the achievements they’re most fond of. This is one of the few categories where we actually get to see what the voters are considering in advance of the nominations. We’re still a month and change away from the big announcement, but we can have a much more educated guess now today than we did just 24 hours ago, and that’s a plus for me. Below you’ll see which 20 the Academy is going to be choosing between, along with some quick thoughts on what might advance to the final five… As a real quick primer, here’s what the previous winners in this category have looked like of late: 2014 – Interstellar 2013 – Gravity 2012 – Life of Pi 2011 – Hugo 2010 – Inception 2009 – Avatar 2008 – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button 2007 – The Golden Compass 2006 – Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest 2005 – King Kong 2004 – Spider-Man 2 2003 – The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King 2002 – The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 2001 – The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring 2000 – Gladiator As you can see, it certainly doesn’t hurt to be a Best Picture nominee in this category. It’s not a requirement, but it helps for sure. At times, it can seem like Best Visual Effects means Most Visual Effects, but by and large there isn’t an embarrassment in the lot. With the strong slate this year, that’s a streak we’re likely to have continue, and I’m all for that, obviously. In fact, one could even argue that this year’s winner, provided it’s one of a few noteworthy titles, might be one of the best choice in some time. That’s another story though, but one to keep an eye on. Among the snubbed hopefuls, we have titles like Cinderella, Crimson Peak, Fantastic Four, Kingsman: The Secret Service, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Pan, Pixels, San Andreas, Ted 2, and Victor Frankenstein. I was slightly surprised that Cinderella and Pan didn’t make the cut, but they were never likely to get nominated anyway, so it’s hardly a big deal. One or two of the ones that did make the next stage are on the less noteworthy side, but you really can’t cry foul. Most years, something really egregious is left off, but that’s not [...]