7 Films in the Running For Best Make-Up Oscar: Who Got Snubbed?

Trying to keep up with whatever the heck the Oscars are doing every year is a full time job for many entertainment journalists, mainly because of the organization's labyrinthine rules and often bizarre nomination process. In the case of some categories, all of the potential nominees are whittled down to a shorter list of potential nominees and then, from that list, the final nominations are decided. This is the case with the Best Make-Up Academy Award and the list of seven finalists has been revealed.

And here they are, the seven films on the shortlist: 'Hitchcock,' 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,' 'Les Miserables,' 'Lincoln,' 'Looper,' 'Men In Black 3' and 'Snow White and the Huntsman.' But which ones have the best shot at the final nomination?

'Hitchcock' successfully transformed Anthony Hopkins into the Alfred Hitchcock, a feat that's rather impressive no matter what you think of the finished product. The same goes for 'Lincoln,' which not only made Daniel Day-Lewis the spitting image of the sixteenth president but made several dozen recognizable character actors look like they belonged in the 19th century. The make-up in 'Les Miserables' doesn't have the immediate wow factor of those films, but it's on the road to a bunch of nominations no matter what.

On the other end of the spectrum, 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' and 'Snow White and the Huntsman' created all kinds of fantastical creatures, including orcs and Dwarves. Peter Jackson's 'Lord of the Rings' films were nominated in this category several times, so 'The Hobbit' will most likely show up again here. And speaking of fantastical, 'Men in Black 3' wasn't particularly well-loved, but Rick Baker's alien creations in the film are nothing short of stunning and the Academy loves his work. Less immediately fantastical but still incredibly impressive is the make-up in 'Looper,' which transformed Joseph Gordon Levitt into a young Bruce Willis with uncanny accuracy.

The one huge snub here is 'Cloud Atlas,' which used make-up effects to transform its cast into many different characters of carious races, ages and sexes. Unfortunately, the film's mixed reception and poor box office doomed any of its awards chances.

What films do you think deserve the award? What do you think go snubbed?