Two years ago, ‘True Grit’ star Hailee Steinfeld was just entering middle school. In a month, she’ll take a seat at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, Calif., reveling in Hollywood’s brightest spotlight, knowing she has a shot at upsetting Melissa Leo to win an Academy Award.

Just 14 years old, Steinfeld poses the greatest threat to the 50-year-old Leo, whose performance in ‘The Fighter’ marks her second Oscar nomination in three years.

The Steinfeld versus Leo battle is just one of many featuring a bright young actor against a considerably more seasoned performer. With similarly heated races in the best actor and actress fields, generation gaps have come to define the 83rd Academy Awards.

The awards season commenced with a bang when the National Board of Review named Jesse Eisenberg best actor for his performance in ‘The Social Network.’ Along with ‘127 Hours’ star James Franco, Eisenberg is one of the two rising stars looking to topple an intimidating trio of Oscar vets.

In order to take home a statuette, Eisenberg and Franco will have to overcome Javier Bardem (‘Biutiful’) and Jeff Bridges (‘True Grit’) — both of whom already have Oscars on their mantles — as well as 50-year-old Colin Firth, considered the front-runner for his performance in ‘The King’s Speech.’

Every Academy Award-nominated actor is an easy target for poking fun. It is not uncommon to hear two-time Best Actor winner Sean Penn referred to as Spicoli, the legendary stoner Penn played to perfection in ‘Fast Times at Ridgemont High’ (1981). Since his screen debut, Eisenberg has been stuck playing perpetually virginal, endearingly awkward characters. In his masterful portrayal of Mark Zuckerberg in ‘The Social Network,’ he is essentially a more diabolical version of his usual character, which would only amplify the drama if he were to beat the elegant Firth.

The Best Supporting Actress and Best Actor races will prove to be fascinating, even riveting, once the show starts Feb. 27. Upsets of titanic proportions could occur. And they both pale in comparison to the Best Actress race.

Four-time nominee Annette Bening (‘The Kids Are All Right’) is no stranger to losing to a younger counterpart. In 1999, she memorably lost to Hilary Swank (‘Boys Don’t Cry’), despite being considered the formidable front-runner. In 2004, on the heels of a great performance in ‘Being Julia,’ she lost to Swank (‘Million Dollar Baby’) again. When Swank won her second Oscar, she was just 30 years old.

Enter 29-year-old Natalie Portman, whose performance in ‘Black Swan’ was hailed as one of the most challenging, frightening and physically draining performances of our time. Both Portman and Bening won Golden Globes for their performances, and though Portman has edged into the forefront as the ceremony nears, the fight is far from over. Will voters frown upon the fact that Portman did not do 100 percent of her character’s dancing in ‘Black Swan’? Could Bening’s funnier, more natural performance prove to be more appealing?

Across the board, the voters’ decisions were uncommonly impressive. ‘The King’s Speech’ and ‘The Social Network’ lead a very strong Best Picture field, facing strong competition from the likes of ‘Toy Story 3,’ ‘Winter’s Bone’ and even ‘Inception.’ Christian Bale (‘The Fighter’) appears to be in lock for the Best Supporting Actor award, and David Fincher (‘The Social Network’) looks to be in good shape to win the Best Director award.

Age gaps will make this year’s ceremony one of the most exciting in memory. Jam-packed with young talent as it is, there has been no room to mention Bening’s second biggest challenger, ‘Winter’s Bone’ star Jennifer Lawrence. As it so happens, Lawrenceis attempting to set a record.

She’s only 20. 

smlittma@syr.edu

Published on February 2, 2011 at 12:00 pm