3. Emmanuelle Riva Beats Jennifer Lawrence For Best Actress
Jennifer Lawrence is Hollywoods It-Girl. She has achieved extraordinary box office success with films like The Hunger Games and the latest X-Men installment. Lawrence has won over critics as well with her performances in Winters Bone and now Silver Linings Playbook. The world is at her feet but are the Oscars? She has a bright future ahead of her but is the Academy going to reward someone who has achieved so much and hasnt even reached the age of 25 yet? Some may say, shes got a long road ahead of her and her time will come but not now. Emmanuelle Riva, on the other hand, is over 80 years of age and has been acting for decades. While not well known in mainstream circles, Riva has a highly respected pedigree with many films and stage performances under her belt. This will also likely be her only shot at ever winning an Oscar. Moreover, her performance in Amour is widely loved and the film itself has garnered an extraordinary amount of nominations for a foreign language film. This is the only category where I really see the possibility that anyone can win. Jessica Chastain still has a shot while Naomi Watts has the overdue tag. Even little Quvenzhane Wallis has a chance, as her performance is the most riveting Ive ever seen from a child. Rivas got sentiment while Lawrence has popular appeal and heavy hitter Harvey Weinstein in her corner. It truly is a coin toss and Im leaning towards Lawrence but dont be surprised if Riva becomes the oldest ever Best Actress recipient.