Oscars 2016- My nominee predictions
It's Oscar month here on the blog and while it's not wall to wall Oscar coverage this year, we're still going pretty full on. Similar to last year, I'm going to predict the nominations today, review a few of the biggest competitors over the next few weeks and then finally predict the winners before the ceremony. There will be a few other posts to keep it fresh, like some speculation on House of Cards and Deadpool also comes out soon which I can't ignore. For now though, I hope you like Oscars and Oscar talk because it's going to be a lot of that. As ever, most of these films haven't even come out in England yet so expect plenty of rampant speculation.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Mad Max: Fury Road
Ant Man
I like this category but really only because it means some of the sillier yet fun action films get recognition and are technically Oscar winners. I have a feeling all of these films will get a nomination. Star Wars is still the film of the moment and looked great, Mad Max utilised practical effects in jaw dropping ways and Ant Man did the impossible by making a film about a tiny man look amazing and be pretty distinct from the other Marvel movies. This category is basically the biggest action movies of the year so I don't think we'll get many surprises from it.
For this category, I had two definites. The academy loves them a bit of Pixar and Inside Out was exceptional so I expect that to be nominated. The Good Dinosaur, while not as good as Inside Out, was also a really good film so I expect to see that nominated. My third pick was hard but I eventually plumped for The Peanuts Movie because it was decent fun, heartwarming in places and without a doubt was animated fantastically. We could get a few surprises but this category belongs to Pixar.
Time for actors and actresses in an incredibly close and confusing battle this year. This could well be the single most unpredictable category of the year, alongside best supporting actor and also best picture. While I was researching what other sites were predicting, there was absolutely no consensus so I've gone freestyle. First was Kate Winslet for Steve Jobs. While I may not be a big fan of her work outside of Eternal Sunshine, she nailed her role in Steve Jobs. Next I chose Alicia Vikander for her chilling role in Ex Machina. While her performance is definitely Oscar worthy, it might be too scary for the Oscar voters. Finally, I went for a punt based on early reviews and his previous work writing characters and chose Jennifer Jason Leigh for The Hateful Eight. I dunno, seems fairly likely. But I could well be totally wrong on all of these, more so than any other category.
Yeah, another confusing category. For a start, I hadn't seen most of the movies people were predicting so more wild guess work was in order. My first pick was Sylvester Stallone for Creed. That movie has been picking up real steam with it's nominations and the Academy may well want to reward an acting veteran. Next I went for a movie I saw, but no one else did, 99 Homes and Michael Shannon's performance. The movie has flown under most radars but Shannon was nominated for a Golden Globe for it and he was superb so he has a chance. Finally, the wild card: Idris Elba for Beasts of No Nation. While TV movies can't get nominations, this is Netflix and I truly believe the academy would be foolish to ignore it as a serious force for movie making. I mean, I haven't seen it but people liked it. I dunno, haven't got a better reason.
Okay, time for the big categories and first up, the leading ladies. Again, missed a lot from these categories but this time, they are at least safe bets. I chose Brie Larson first for Room and not just because she plays Abed girlfriend for a bit in Community. She's been taking the award season by storm and seeing as (I'm pretty sure) she has to carry the whole movie, it's going to be a pretty impressive role. Next I chose Jennifer Lawrence for Joy. Truth be told, I don't really have plans to watch this movie but Jennifer Lawrence has been a recent favourite at the Oscars and she is a really talented actress. A safe nomination for sure. Finally, I went wild card again and chose Charlize Theron for Mad Max: Fury Road. Now hold on a second, it's not as strange as it sounds. Fury Road has been campaigning for Oscar glory and I think they could well get some nominations. Plus, anyone who's seen the film knows that the real star of the film is Furiosa and it's Theron's performance that sells it.
We're getting into the nitty gritty now as we look for the best directors. Directing is a hard thing to pinpoint generally but it's time for me to try. My first choice is Mad Max: Fury Road. I've chosen it a lot but they've been campaigning hard on this movie and to have a director not only come back to a franchise after 30 years and make a phenomenal movie, but he also made it after doing Babe and the two Happy Feet films. In a similar vein of veteran directors, I chose Ridley Scott for The Martian. He's been around Hollywood longer than most but The Martian is still one of his best. It's a film that grips and feels confident, which I guess we should expect from a pro like Scott but it still deserves recognition. My final pick was a film I've never seen and haven't heard much of but critics and award ceremonies are lapping it up so it's probably pretty good: Todd Haynes for Carol. It's meant to be good and it's the kind of movie that usually get's a best director nod. Look, it's predictions, not what I like.
Best Animated Film
Inside Out
The Good Dinosaur
Charlie Brown and Snoopy: The Peanuts Movie
For this category, I had two definites. The academy loves them a bit of Pixar and Inside Out was exceptional so I expect that to be nominated. The Good Dinosaur, while not as good as Inside Out, was also a really good film so I expect to see that nominated. My third pick was hard but I eventually plumped for The Peanuts Movie because it was decent fun, heartwarming in places and without a doubt was animated fantastically. We could get a few surprises but this category belongs to Pixar.
Best Cinematography
The Revenant
The Martian
Sicario
Cinematography is a fancy word the film industry use for using camera to make a film look good and we had some really good looking films this year. My first nomination is The Revenant purely based on it's trailers and the quality of Birdman. I haven't seen the film yet (this week though) but it looks phenomenal and I've heard nothing but good about it. However, I've seen my other nominations. I praised The Martian for making Mars look gorgeous and I still stand by that and Sicario was as beautifully shot as Prisoners and Enemy before it. It made every dark tone of the film sink in that bit further. It's a very pretty category this year for sure.
Cinematography is a fancy word the film industry use for using camera to make a film look good and we had some really good looking films this year. My first nomination is The Revenant purely based on it's trailers and the quality of Birdman. I haven't seen the film yet (this week though) but it looks phenomenal and I've heard nothing but good about it. However, I've seen my other nominations. I praised The Martian for making Mars look gorgeous and I still stand by that and Sicario was as beautifully shot as Prisoners and Enemy before it. It made every dark tone of the film sink in that bit further. It's a very pretty category this year for sure.
Best Supporting Actress
Kate Winslet for Steve Jobs
Alicia Vikander for Ex Machina
Jennifer Jason Leigh for The Hateful Eight
Time for actors and actresses in an incredibly close and confusing battle this year. This could well be the single most unpredictable category of the year, alongside best supporting actor and also best picture. While I was researching what other sites were predicting, there was absolutely no consensus so I've gone freestyle. First was Kate Winslet for Steve Jobs. While I may not be a big fan of her work outside of Eternal Sunshine, she nailed her role in Steve Jobs. Next I chose Alicia Vikander for her chilling role in Ex Machina. While her performance is definitely Oscar worthy, it might be too scary for the Oscar voters. Finally, I went for a punt based on early reviews and his previous work writing characters and chose Jennifer Jason Leigh for The Hateful Eight. I dunno, seems fairly likely. But I could well be totally wrong on all of these, more so than any other category.
Best Supporting Actor
Sylvester Stallone for Creed
Michael Shannon for 99 Homes
Idris Elba for Beasts of No Nation
Yeah, another confusing category. For a start, I hadn't seen most of the movies people were predicting so more wild guess work was in order. My first pick was Sylvester Stallone for Creed. That movie has been picking up real steam with it's nominations and the Academy may well want to reward an acting veteran. Next I went for a movie I saw, but no one else did, 99 Homes and Michael Shannon's performance. The movie has flown under most radars but Shannon was nominated for a Golden Globe for it and he was superb so he has a chance. Finally, the wild card: Idris Elba for Beasts of No Nation. While TV movies can't get nominations, this is Netflix and I truly believe the academy would be foolish to ignore it as a serious force for movie making. I mean, I haven't seen it but people liked it. I dunno, haven't got a better reason.
Best Actress
Brie Larson for Room
Jennifer Lawrence for Joy
Charlize Theron for Mad Max: Fury Road
Okay, time for the big categories and first up, the leading ladies. Again, missed a lot from these categories but this time, they are at least safe bets. I chose Brie Larson first for Room and not just because she plays Abed girlfriend for a bit in Community. She's been taking the award season by storm and seeing as (I'm pretty sure) she has to carry the whole movie, it's going to be a pretty impressive role. Next I chose Jennifer Lawrence for Joy. Truth be told, I don't really have plans to watch this movie but Jennifer Lawrence has been a recent favourite at the Oscars and she is a really talented actress. A safe nomination for sure. Finally, I went wild card again and chose Charlize Theron for Mad Max: Fury Road. Now hold on a second, it's not as strange as it sounds. Fury Road has been campaigning for Oscar glory and I think they could well get some nominations. Plus, anyone who's seen the film knows that the real star of the film is Furiosa and it's Theron's performance that sells it.
Best Actor
Leonardo DiCaprio for The Revenant
Michael Fassbender for Steve Jobs
Matt Damon for The Martian
Who will take Eddie Redmayne's crown this year? Well, probably not Eddie Redmayne so let's look at the other contenders. I chose Leonardo DiCaprio because not only is he constantly the butt of jokes about not getting Oscars but also because The Revenant has been getting huge hype and it's apparently the best performance of his career, which is usually grounds for an Oscar. After that, we've got Fassbender for Steve Jobs. The movie may have bombed but the cast flew and Fassbender excels in every single scene. He deserves a place among the very best of the year. Speaking of which, Matt Damon for The Martian. Being the last man on Mars, Damon had to carry the film. Sure, he wasn't the only character in the film but he was the emotional core and considering how emotional the film was, he was an unprecedented success. It'll be interesting to see who makes up the final two spaces though.
Who will take Eddie Redmayne's crown this year? Well, probably not Eddie Redmayne so let's look at the other contenders. I chose Leonardo DiCaprio because not only is he constantly the butt of jokes about not getting Oscars but also because The Revenant has been getting huge hype and it's apparently the best performance of his career, which is usually grounds for an Oscar. After that, we've got Fassbender for Steve Jobs. The movie may have bombed but the cast flew and Fassbender excels in every single scene. He deserves a place among the very best of the year. Speaking of which, Matt Damon for The Martian. Being the last man on Mars, Damon had to carry the film. Sure, he wasn't the only character in the film but he was the emotional core and considering how emotional the film was, he was an unprecedented success. It'll be interesting to see who makes up the final two spaces though.
Best Director
George Miller for Mad Max: Fury Road
Ridley Scott for The Martian
Todd Haynes for Carol
We're getting into the nitty gritty now as we look for the best directors. Directing is a hard thing to pinpoint generally but it's time for me to try. My first choice is Mad Max: Fury Road. I've chosen it a lot but they've been campaigning hard on this movie and to have a director not only come back to a franchise after 30 years and make a phenomenal movie, but he also made it after doing Babe and the two Happy Feet films. In a similar vein of veteran directors, I chose Ridley Scott for The Martian. He's been around Hollywood longer than most but The Martian is still one of his best. It's a film that grips and feels confident, which I guess we should expect from a pro like Scott but it still deserves recognition. My final pick was a film I've never seen and haven't heard much of but critics and award ceremonies are lapping it up so it's probably pretty good: Todd Haynes for Carol. It's meant to be good and it's the kind of movie that usually get's a best director nod. Look, it's predictions, not what I like.
Best Picture
Spotlight
The Big Short
Inside Out
The Martian
Mad Max: Fury Road
Okay, the big one. The one that non-pretentious movie snobs kind of care about. I chose five because there are a lot more nominations for Best Picture. I'll spend a bit less time on each but they're still good movies (I assume for some). Spotlight: an ensemble cast in a film based on a true story that's topic slightly scandalous. How could it not be nominated? The Big Short: an ensemble cast in a film based on a true story that's topic is still slightly scandalous. I'm getting a slight sense of deja vu but oh well, people liked it. Insdie Out: possibly one of the best animated films ever, certainly one of last year's best. The Martian: an easy to love film about one man fighting the odds to survive. It may be easy to love but that doesn't mean it's not fantastic. Finally, Mad Max: Fury Road: one of the best action films in a long time, it's a testament to the power of film making and deserves to be praised as so.
The nominations are released late this Thursday (which really means we'll see them on Friday) so check back to see how correct I was or wasn't. Then get ready to go into Oscar overdrive as I balance films and school in an impressive feat that will end in my grades going down.
Okay, the big one. The one that non-pretentious movie snobs kind of care about. I chose five because there are a lot more nominations for Best Picture. I'll spend a bit less time on each but they're still good movies (I assume for some). Spotlight: an ensemble cast in a film based on a true story that's topic slightly scandalous. How could it not be nominated? The Big Short: an ensemble cast in a film based on a true story that's topic is still slightly scandalous. I'm getting a slight sense of deja vu but oh well, people liked it. Insdie Out: possibly one of the best animated films ever, certainly one of last year's best. The Martian: an easy to love film about one man fighting the odds to survive. It may be easy to love but that doesn't mean it's not fantastic. Finally, Mad Max: Fury Road: one of the best action films in a long time, it's a testament to the power of film making and deserves to be praised as so.
The nominations are released late this Thursday (which really means we'll see them on Friday) so check back to see how correct I was or wasn't. Then get ready to go into Oscar overdrive as I balance films and school in an impressive feat that will end in my grades going down.
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