My Oscar Predictions 2018

My Oscar Predictions 2018

Yes! It’s Oscar time!! I love this time of year! So here are my predictions for the 90^th Academy Awards! Fingers crossed there are no envelope mishaps this year!

Best Picture

And the nominees are:

Call Me By Your Name

Darkest Hour

Dunkirk

Get Out

Lady Bird

Phantom Thread

The Post

The Shape of Water

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

My pick: The Shape of Water. This is the big one. The one that everyone talks about. Take note people handing out the envelopes, this is the one you don’t want to screw up! Conventional wisdom says that Shape of Water will win. But don’t count out Three Billboards which has garnered a bunch of other awards. Get Out has an outside chance of winning here. Some people think it has just as much of a chance as Moonlight did last year, but I disagree. I wouldn’t be too upset if Get Out won, a genre film winning in this category is always fun. But I still think that Shape of Water has the best shot here.

Actor in a Leading Role

And the nominees are:

Timothee Chalamet (Call Me By Your Name)

Daniel Day-Lewis (Phantom Thread)

Daniel Kaluuya (Get Out)

Gary Oldman (Darkest Hour)

Denzel Washington (Roman J. Israel, Esq.)

My pick: Gary Oldman (for Darkest Hour). Pretty safe bet here. Oldman has been in this business for decades and has never won an Oscar before. He also played Churchill and he is in right now. And people who play Churchill have won some awards recently (John Lithgow for the Crown ring any bells?). Historical figure, check. Tons of makeup to make the actor unrecognizable, check. Yeah, it is his award to lose. The only upset that could happen here is if the Academy wanted to give Day-Lewis one last Oscar (this is supposedly his last film).

Actress in a Leading Role

And the nominees are:

Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water)

Frances McDormand (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri)

Margot Robbie (I, Tonya)

Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird)

Meryl Streep (The Post)

My pick: Frances McDormand (for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri). This one is pretty much a sure thing. A mother trying to get justice for her murdered daughter? Yep, that performance will win. I would be happy if Sally Hawkins or Saoirse Ronan won, because I love those actresses. But I won’t be upset to see McDormand win. And come on Meryl, how many nominations do you need?

Actor in a Supporting Role

And the nominees are:

Willem Dafoe (The Florida Project)

Woody Harrelson (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri)

Richard Jenkins (The Shape of Water)

Christopher Plummer (All the Money in the World)

Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri)

My pick: Sam Rockwell (for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri). This category is a bit tougher. Most people think Rockwell is a sure thing. But there is an outside chance that Willem Dafoe could sneak a win here. Since this is the one category where The Florida Project was nominated. However, the actor who SHOULD be in this category is Patrick Stewart for Logan. But the Academy decided not to nominate him. Shame on them. Logan was essentially a western (and the Academy loves those) but since it was labeled a “Superhero” movie it didn’t have much of a chance in the acting categories.

Actress in a Supporting Role

And the nominees are:

Mary J. Blige (Mudbound)

Allison Janney (I, Tonya)

Lesley Manville (Phantom Thread)

Laurie Metcalf (Lady Bird)

Octavia Spencer (The Shape of Water)

My pick: Allison Janney (for I, Tonya). This one breaks my heart. I love Allison Janney, she is great and has been in this business for a long time. She gave, what I hear, is a great performance. But I have loved Laurie Metcalf since I was little and watched Roseanne reruns on TV. In fact, Metcalf is one of my favorite funny people on the PLANET. I would LOVE to see her win here, especially since it would get her one step closer to her EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony). But Janney has slightly more momentum in this category. I would be THRILLED if Metcalf won, but I don’t think it’s going to happen.

Animated Feature Film

And the nominees are:

Boss Baby

The Breadwinner

Coco

Ferdinand

Loving Vincent

My pick: Coco. I mean come on, really? What else even has a shot here? Coco is one of the best Pixar movies I have ever seen, and that’s saying something. But its competition is so sad. Boss Baby? How did that get a nomination over Cars 3? Or any of the Lego movies that came out last year? I guess the Academy has a grudge against all Lego movies and they will never get nominated in this category. No offense to Loving Vincent I hear it is beautiful. But nothing is going to beat Coco, and nothing should.

Cinematography

And the nominees are:

Blade Runner 2049

Darkest Hour

Dunkirk

Mudbound

The Shape of Water

My pick: Blade Runner 2049. Roger Deakins has been nominated in this category 14 times, just give it to him already! But I could see Dunkirk taking this award instead, since it was nominated for Best Picture and Blade Runner wasn’t.

Costume Design

And the nominees are:

Beauty and the Beast

Darkest Hour

Phantom Thread

The Shape of Water

Victoria & Abdul

My pick: Phantom Thread. It’s a movie about a fashion designer, I think it might win. However, I am FURIOUS that Wonder Woman wasn’t nominated in this category and Darkest Hour was! Wonder Woman is a period film that had both WWI soldier costumes and Amazonian costumes to create, and did it beautifully I might add. But no, give the nomination to the film that had costumes for Churchill and some other men who sat around and talked. That makes sense.

Directing

And the nominees are:

Christopher Nolan (Dunkirk)

Jordan Peele (Get Out)

Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird)

Paul Thomas Anderson (Phantom Thread)

Guillermo del Toro (The Shape of Water)

My pick: Guillermo del Toro (for The Shape of Water). I’m so HAPPY! It is finally del Toro’s year! I have loved this man and his weirdness for so long. He is just so different. Love his films for hate them, they are unique. Don’t get me wrong, I’m so happy that a woman got nominated in this category (since that almost never happens). And I’m happy that an African American director is also being recognized here (since that almost never happens either). But this is del Toro’s award. Yay!

Documentary Feature

And the nominees are:

Abacus: Small Enough to Jail

Faces Places

Icarus

Last Man in Aleppo

Strong Island

My pick: Icarus. Considering how close we are to the Olympics I think this documentary about the doping scandal should take the award. But I could see Last Man in Aleppo or Faces Places winning instead.

Documentary Short Subject

And the nominees are:

Edith+Eddie

Heaven Is a Traffic Jam on the 405

Heroin(e)

Knife Skills

Traffic Stop

My pick: Heroin(e). It’s Netflix and it’s about the opioid crisis, so I think it is a safe bet. But I could see Heaven is a Traffic Jam winning, since it shines a light on mental illness. Or Edith+Eddie, which is about a pair of interracial newlyweds (who just happen to be in their 90’s)!

Film Editing

And the nominees are:

Baby Driver

Dunkirk

I, Tonya

The Shape of Water

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

My pick: Dunkirk. This one is hard. I LOVE Baby Driver (even though it has HIM in it). But it is hard to go against the WWII epic. I hope Baby Driver wins, but I’m not counting on it.

Foreign Language Film

And the nominees are:

A Fantastic Woman

The Insult

Loveless

On Body and Soul

The Square

My pick: The Insult. This one could go either way. A Fantastic Woman has a lot of award buzz. But the Insult deals with refugees and other important topics. Flipping a coin, going with the Insult.

Makeup and Hairstyling

And the nominees are:

Darkest Hour

Victoria & Abdul

Wonder

My pick: Darkest Hour. They made Gary Oldman unrecognizable, pretty safe bet. Although Wonder had great makeup too.

Music (Original Score)

And the nominees are:

Dunkirk (Hans Zimmer)

Phantom Thread (Jonny Greenwood)

The Shape of Water (Alexandre Desplat)

Star Wars: the Last Jedi (John Williams)

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (Carter Burwell)

My pick: Alexandre Desplat (The Shape of Water). I LOVE Desplat, he has done some of my favorite scores (look him up). Although I do love Hans Zimmer (who doesn’t?) and John Williams. Desplat’s score is just so beautiful. I did really like Phantom Threads soundtrack as well. Again Wonder Woman should have gotten a nomination here. No offense to Carter Burrell, but Wonder Woman should have gotten your spot.

Music (Original Song)

And the nominees are:

“Mighty River” from Mudbound

“Mystery of Love” from Call Me By Your Name

“Remember Me” from Coco

“Stand Up For Something” from Marshall

“This Is Me” from The Greatest Showman

My pick: “This Is Me” from The Greatest Showman. I don’t KNOW!! It’s between Coco and The Greatest Showman. I love Coco so much, and this song is great! But I think “Un Poco Loco” should have been nominated as well. But I’m going with the popular song from the popular musical. I really don’t know though.

Production Design

And the nominees are:

Beauty and the Beast

Blade Runner 2049

Darkest Hour

Dunkirk

The Shape of Water

My pick: The Shape of Water. Blade Runner has a good shot, but Shape of Water has more nominations, so…

Short Film (Animated)

And the nominees are:

Dear Basketball

Garden Party

Lou

Negative Space

Revolting Rhymes

My pick: Dear Basketball. It has the big name behind it (Kobe Bryant). But Pixar could get this one for Lou.

Short Film (Live Action)

And the nominees are:

DeKalb Elementary

The Eleven O’Clock

My Nephew Emmett

The Silent Child

Watu Wote/All of Us

My pick: DeKalb Elementary. Unfortunately, it is about a topic on everyone’s minds. I think My Nephew Emmett looks great, but probably won’t win.

Sound Editing

And the nominees are:

Baby Driver

Blade Runner 2049

Dunkirk

The Shape of Water

Star Wars: the Last Jedi

My pick: Dunkirk. War movie, enough said.

Sound Mixing

And the nominees are:

Baby Driver

Blade Runner 2049

Dunkirk

The Shape of Water

Star Wars: the Last Jedi

My pick: Dunkirk. Same as Sound Editing. But Baby Driver could be an upset here.

Visual Effects

And the nominees are:

Blade Runner 2049

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Kong: Skull Island

Star Wars: the Last Jedi

War for the Planet of the Apes

My pick: War for the Planet of the Apes. Motion capture apes. I know, Kong is similar. But that is one ape as opposed to many. I think more apes equals more chances, hopefully since this series never wins in this category. But don’t be surprised if Blade Runner pulls an upset.

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

And the nominees are:

Call Me By Your Name

The Disaster Artist

Logan

Molly’s Game

Mudbound

My pick: Call Me By Your Name. I think this is the one category this film will win. I am SOOO happy that Logan got a nomination here! But it has almost no chance. Would make me happy though!

Writing (Original Screenplay)

And the nominees are:

The Big Sick

Get Out

Lady Bird

The Shape of Water

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

My pick: Get Out. I don’t think Get Out will win anywhere else. So the Academy will likely give it some love here. Although Three Billboards could sneak in here, my money is on Get Out.