Oscars Betting 2009
The 81st Academy Awards or the Oscars, as they are better known, are the most prestigious and longest running film awards in the world and this year the presentations take place at the Kodak Theatre on Feb 22 2009. Oscar betting enthusiasts will be studying earlier award ceremonies such as the Baftas and the US National Society of Film Critics (NSFC) Awards to get an inkling of the films and actors in with the best shout to walk away with one of the coveted statues.
The Oscars Betting Odds
Online betting sites, aware of the huge interest in film betting, have now been slow to offer a wide range of on the outcome of award ceremonies. Best film and best male and female actors are the top categories of interest to punters and there is every opportunity to find odds on offer from most of the top online bookmakers. It’s also worth noting that online betting sites offer very generous free bets to new customers and you would be well advised to shop around to see what’s on offer when you’re ready to sign up. There are sites that will help you find the top free bets and also the best site for your needs.
Oscars 2009 Hot Favourites
There are a few animations attracting attention this year but, among Best Film contenders with actual actors in them is ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ - a surprise Bollywood nomination, and a strong challenger at 11/10, after winning almost every film critics award in the US as well as two Screen Actors Guild (SAG) nominations. ‘Milk’, winner of the New York Film Critics best film award and with Sean Penn in the lead role is up there and quoted as 9/2 joint-second favourite. Also at 9/2 is ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’ which has enough Hollywood nostalgia to mesmerise voting members and may come through in the end while ‘Revolutionary Road’ may deliver Kate Winslett’s first Best Female Actor award but is regarded as a flawed film. ‘The Wrestler’ is Mickey Rourke’s attempt to resurrect his career but at 12/1 is a relative outsider. ‘Dark Night’, the latest Batman offering at 14/1, has the performance of the recently deceased Heath Ledger to recommend it, if only for sentimental reasons. He will almost certainly get the Best Supporting Actor award.
Topical affairs can influence voting members and the events in Gaza right now, in which Israel is invading Gaza in an effort to stop Hamas from firing rockets at them may bring the Israeli animated documentary film about the 1982 invasion of Lebanon, ‘Waltz With Bashir’, priced at around 11/10, to the fore. The NSFC has just voted it best picture of 2008. The children’s animation, ‘Wall-E’ about a future where our arms and legs have all but disappeared and we are all grossly obese, due to inactivity, is also a front runner. It’s worth noting, however, that the last animation to be considered for top picture was ‘Beauty and the Beast’ in 1991.
The industry insiders who cast their votes for the contenders are slightly unpredictable and it’s a tricky business predicting what they will choose as the best each year. When ‘Gandhi’ won in 1982 industry media wags claimed the eponymous lead represented all that most Hollywood men want to be – thin, brown and morally sound – and it may be that film betting fans should take such influences into account alongside the merits of the films themselves.