The Oscars are here again, and it has been quite a competitive year, with many deserving hopefuls vying only for five nominee slots in each category. Even the much-coveted Best Picture award has a healthy set of nine nominees, above the usual eight films, nearing its limit of ten slots.
“Joker”
Leading the pack is JOKER with eleven nominations, closely followed by a triple tie with THE IRISHMAN, ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD and 1917 getting ten nominations each. Next in line with six nominations each are JOJO RABBIT, LITTLE WOMEN, MARRIAGE STORY and PARASITE.
Jennifer Lopez, “Hustlers”
The notable snubs include J-Lo for Best Supporting Actress for HUSTLERS, Greta Gerwig for Best Director for LITTLE WOMEN, Taron Egerton for Best Actor for ROCKETMAN, Awkwafina for Best Actress for THE FAREWELL and FROZEN 2 for Best Animation Feature.
Greta Gerwig, “Little Women”
With the actual ceremony happening on Sunday, February 9, 2020, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, here are my fearless predictions to win the awards.
BEST PICTURE
“1917”
“Ford v Ferrari” “The Irishman” “Jojo Rabbit” “Joker” “Little Women” “Marriage Story” “1917” – WINNER “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” “Parasite”
BEST LEAD ACTOR
Joaquin Phoenix, “Joker”
Antonio Banderas, “Pain and Glory” Leonardo DiCaprio, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” Adam Driver, “Marriage Story” Joaquin Phoenix, “Joker” – WINNER Jonathan Pryce, “The Two Popes”
Tom Hanks, “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” Anthony Hopkins, “The Two Popes” Al Pacino, “The Irishman” Joe Pesci, “The Irishman” Brad Pitt, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” – WINNER
Martin Scorsese, “The Irishman” Todd Phillips, “Joker” Sam Mendes, “1917” – WINNER Quentin Tarantino, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” Bong Joon Ho, “Parasite”
Sam Mendes, “1917”
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Josh Cooley, “Toy Story 4″
“How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World,” Dean DeBlois “I Lost My Body,” Jeremy Clapin “Klaus,” Sergio Pablos “Missing Link,” Chris Butler “Toy Story 4,” Josh Cooley – WINNER
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Greta Gerwig, “Little Women”
“The Irishman,” Steven Zaillian “Jojo Rabbit,” Taika Waititi “Joker,” Todd Phillips, Scott Silver “Little Women,” Greta Gerwig – WINNER “The Two Popes,” Anthony McCarten
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Quentin Tarantino, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
“Knives Out,” Rian Johnson “Marriage Story,” Noah Baumbach “1917,” Sam Mendes and Krysty Wilson-Cairns “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Quentin Tarantino – WINNER “Parasite,” Bong Joon-ho, Jin Won Han
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Roger Deakins, “1917”
“The Irishman,” Rodrigo Prieto “Joker,” Lawrence Sher “The Lighthouse,” Jarin Blaschke “1917,” Roger Deakins – WINNER “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Robert Richardson
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Julia Rieichert and Steven Bognar, “American Factory”
“American Factory,” Julia Rieichert and Steven Bognar – WINNER “The Cave,” Feras Fayyad “The Edge of Democracy,” Petra Costa “For Sama,” Waad Al-Kateab, Edward Watts “Honeyland,” Tamara Kotevska, Ljubo Stefanov
BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
Bong Joon Ho, “Parasite”
“Corpus Christi,” Jan Komasa “Honeyland,” Tamara Kotevska, Ljubo Stefanov “Les Miserables,” Ladj Ly “Pain and Glory,” Pedro Almodovar “Parasite,” Bong Joon Ho – WINNER
BEST FILM EDITING
Jinmo Yang, “Parasite”
“Ford v Ferrari,” Michael McCusker, Andrew Buckland “The Irishman,” Thelma Schoonmaker “Jojo Rabbit,” Tom Eagles “Joker,” Jeff Groth “Parasite,” Jinmo Yang – WINNER
BEST SOUND EDITING
“1917”
“Ad Astra” “Ford v Ferrari” “Joker” “1917” – WINNER “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
BEST SOUND MIXING
“1917”
“Ad Astra” “Ford v Ferrari” “Joker” “1917” – WINNER “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Barbara Ling and Nancy Haigh, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
“The Irishman,” Bob Shaw and Regina Graves “Jojo Rabbit,” Ra Vincent and Nora Sopkova “1917,” Dennis Gassner and Lee Sandales “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Barbara Ling and Nancy Haigh – WINNER “Parasite,” Lee Ha-Jun and Cho Won Woo, Han Ga Ram, and Cho Hee
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Hildur Guðnadóttir, “Joker”
“Joker,” Hildur Guðnadóttir – WINNER “Little Women,” Alexandre Desplat “Marriage Story,” Randy Newman “1917,” Thomas Newman “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” John Williams
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
“I’m Gonna Love Me Again,” “Rocketman”
“I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away,” “Toy Story 4” “I’m Gonna Love Me Again,” “Rocketman” – WINNER “I’m Standing With You,” “Breakthrough” “Into the Unknown,” “Frozen 2” “Stand Up,” “Harriet”
BEST MAKEUP AND HAIR
“Bombshell”
“Bombshell” – WINNER “Joker” “Judy” “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil” “1917”
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Jacqueline Durran, “Little Women”
”The Irishman,” Sandy Powell, Christopher Peterson “Jojo Rabbit,” Mayes C. Rubeo “Joker,” Mark Bridges “Little Women,” Jacqueline Durran – WINNER “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Arianne Phillips
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
“Avengers Endgame”
“Avengers Endgame” – WINNER “The Irishman” “1917” “The Lion King” “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”
BEST ANIMATED SHORT
Matthew A. Cherry, “Hair Love”
“Dcera,” Daria Kashcheeva “Hair Love,” Matthew A. Cherry – WINNER “Kitbull,” Rosana Sullivan “Memorable,” Bruno Collet “Sister,” Siqi Song
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
Carol Dysinger, “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone”
“In the Absence,” Yi Seung-Jun and Gary Byung-Seok Kam “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone,” Carol Dysinger – WINNER “Life Overtakes Me,” Kristine Samuelson and John Haptas “St. Louis Superman,” Smriti Mundhra and Sami Khan “Walk Run Cha-Cha,” Laura Nix
Films for the cineaste. Were you moved, transported? Did you laugh, cry? Was it cathartic? Were you disturbed, affected, riveted? Did it make you think?
Freelance film editor, cineaste and cinephile
Twitter: @film_critik
Twitter: @rolmar
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/filmcritik/
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