With the full list of nominees to the Oscars having been announced, it’s safe to say that the countdown to the film industry’s biggest night has officially begun. Yes, the new edition of the awards season has already been in full effect with the Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards having concluded their respective occasions. Yet, the road to the Oscars has only just begun.
“Oppenheimer” takes the lead with a whopping 13 nominations, including nods for Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr., and Cillian Murphy. Yorgos Lanthimos’ “Poor Things” is close behind with 11 nominations.
We have to stress that being nominated in itself is no easy feat and is already a tremendous achievement. Placed side by side are some of the best performances, designs, and compositions that one could witness from yesteryear. Therefore, in our books, these nods are all winners!
Despite that, there’s only one trophy per category and we’ll have to choose the victor from each. Part of the fun of the awards season is attempting to figure out which of these nominees will prevail. So, let’s sit back, put on our porkpie hats, and see where the math takes us…
*Predicted winners are denoted in bold; certain categories are skipped due to the lack of availability for prior viewing*
ANIMATED FEATURE
- “The Boy and The Heron”
- “Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse”
- “Nimona”
- “Elemental”
- “Robot Dreams”
We’ll start with this year’s animated feature category, which is most probably a battle between the bird and the arachnid. Indeed, the rest on the list do not hold a candle to what “The Boy and The Heron” and “Across The Spider-Verse” have achieved.
Hayao Miyazaki’s (purportedly final) work here is nothing short of masterful, with his legacy laid out all within this movie. It’s a beautiful, magical, and deeply introspective work of art that begs its audience to ponder upon its themes and symbolism. Every frame feels like a painting, expressing Miyazaki’s lamentations, ponderings, and joys of his life.
Nevertheless, we certainly cannot count “Across The Spider-Verse” out. Not only did it improve and subvert narrative expectations set from the first film, but it also pushed upon the boundaries of animation as a whole. From watercolour worlds to blending a bajillion Spider-People into one scene, this movie was a fine work of art that is worthy of taking home the prize of the night.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
- “El Conde”
- “Killers of the Flower Moon”
- “Maestro”
- “Oppenheimer”
- “Poor Things”
The frontrunner in this category is definitely “Oppenheimer”, which we have to say was a stunningly shot film under the eyes of Hoyte van Hoytema. It begged audiences to look inward, utilising a whole lot of close-up shots. With Cillian Murphy’s beautiful blue eyes, quivering in moral ambiguity as they pondered upon the fiery creation that had emerged before him, the photography is poignant and introspective in a manner unlike any other.
On the other hand, there’s “El Conde” where we also had a stunning piece in black and white feature which we were also awed by. It’s gory, violent and freakish, and yet still graceful in how the photography plays out. There is one sequence in there that reminded us of the viral advertisement from Burberry that captivated us during our watch.
Again, while “Oppenheimer” might be the frontrunner, there’s also the matter of whether it will end up sweeping the categories it was nominated in. We do not think the Academy will allow this to happen in this day and age.
If you take all of these into account, they all do incredible work with the footage and achieve so much with their cinematic value. Nevertheless, we guess it might go to the master and caretaker of cinema, Martin Scorsese.
ORIGINAL SCORE
- “American Fiction”
- “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny”
- “Killers of the Flower Moon”
- “Oppenheimer”
- “Poor Things”
Ludwig Goransson has become the last decade’s score powerhouse, and we think his collaboration with Nolan will give him the edge over all of the other contestants this round. “Oppenheimer’s” brilliant score perfectly underlines Oppenheimer’s moral conflicts, the science and development of the Trinity Test, and the ensuing trials that follow. Simply masterful work from a living legend.
ORIGINAL SONG
- “It Never Went Away” from “American Symphony”
- “I’m Just Ken” from “Barbie”
- “What Was I Made For?” from “Barbie”
- “The Fire Inside” from “Flamin’ Hot”
- “Wahzhazhe (A Song For My People)” from “Killers of the Flower Moon”
First up, whoever thought “Peaches” from “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” was going to make this at least, we regret to inform you that it never stood a chance.
In our opinion, the weakest of these is “The Fire Inside”, which could have been taken away and replaced by any other song from their shortlist. Indeed, we are surprised that “The Color Purple” did not get nominated here. If they wanted to go for a hit, yes, Olivia Rodrigo’s “Can’t Catch Me Now” or Metro Boomin’s “Am I Dreaming” would have been much better options. Alas…
In its only nomination through all the categories, a song from the Jon Batiste documentary about his life and music enters the fray, though we doubt it will make any significant dents to the apparent picks.
Ultimately, the obvious choice from this list is Queen Billie’s moving ballad from the end of “Barbie”. That song was powerful and had the most impact among all of these, playing through Barbie’s climax. Yes, we Ken-not discount the other nominee from “Barbie” but having “I’m Just Ken” walk away with the prize just doesn’t make the most sense.
We trust that the Academy has some sense in them or we’d end up with a truly flabbergasted Ryan Gosling meme (not that that’s a bad thing).
VISUAL EFFECTS
- “The Creator”
- “Godzilla Minus One”
- “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3”
- “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One”
- “Napoleon”
As far as visual effects go, we have to say that Gareth Edwards’ “The Creator” and “Godzilla Minus One” are going to be the frontrunners here.
Both of these films had much smaller budgets than the others on this list and they achieved so much with it. Regardless, we think that Godzilla Minus One would ultimately prevail. Let the king roar!
SOUND
- “The Creator”
- “Maestro”
- “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One”
- “Oppenheimer”
- “The Zone of Interest”
Judging these movies based on sound alone, it’s easy to see why they’re nominated. Nevertheless, we think that “Oppenheimer” will take it home in this technical category. That Trinity test scene alone is just enough to emphasise the film’s astounding engineering, with its silence, culminating in rising radiation, and a delayed explosive effect. Indeed, the sound played a huge part in “Oppenheimer’s” success and that is why we think the movie will win this round.
ANIMATED SHORT
- “Our Uniform”
- “Ninety-Five Senses”
- “Letter to a Pig”
- “Pachyderme”
- “War Is Over! Inspired by The Music of John & Yoko”
DOCUMENTARY SHORT
- “The ABCs of Book Banning”
- “The Barber of Little Rock”
- “Island in Between”
- “The Last Repair Shop”
- “Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó”
LIVE ACTION SHORT
- “The After”
- “Invincible”
- “Knight of Fortune”
- “Red, White and Blue”
- “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar”
Two of these live-action short films are currently available to watch on Netflix. The first is “The After”, led by David Oyelowo, which tells the story of a man who loses his wife and child brutally. As such, the narrative documents the aftermath of that, and the processing of grief one year later. It’s an incredible performance by the actor, and we do recommend it!
The next Netflix short is “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar”. This is the only nomination that Wes Anderson is getting this year after his feature “Asteroid City” was left out of the race. This adaptation of Roald Dahl’s story is quick, witty, and whimsical in the best Wes Anderson-y way possible. Indeed, we do think that this short film is one of the best things that he has created in a while.
“Knight of Fortune”, published by the New Yorker is a cleverly written piece that takes the idea of bonding over grief in a somewhat absurd manner, yet ties it all up with sweetness by its end.
In the end, we do think that the high-profile nature of Wes Anderson’s work might earn him the prize here as most would have seen it and therefore would have had much thoughts on it. And truly, it’s an amazing piece that deserves to win!
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
- “Bobi Wine: The People’s President”
- “The Eternal Memory”
- “Four Daughters”
- “To Kill a Tiger”
- “20 Days in Mariupol”
There is a certain political influence when it comes to how this category flows. During our pick last year, we thought that “Fire of Love” which was truly stunning, would prevail but eventually, it went to “Navalny”.
Similarly, we do think that a documentary like “20 Days In Mariupol”, which documents the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, is a narrative that might eventually take the prize of the night.
MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING
- “Golda”
- “Maestro”
- “Oppenheimer”
- “Poor Things”
- “Society of the Snow”
Makeup plays an important part in getting the looks of characters right and taking back actors to certain periods. Films like “Golda” and “Oppenheimer” relied a lot on these aspects to give their titular characters the changes they needed to display as time went past.
Nevertheless, we felt that out of all of these, not only did the eras change accordingly along with the styling but the prosthetics used in Bradley Cooper’s “Maestro” played a huge part in getting the look of famous composer, Leonard Bernstein, right. Just look at how much work was put into the ageing of Bradley Cooper here.
FILM EDITING
- “Anatomy of a Fall”
- “The Holdovers”
- “Killers of the Flower Moon”
- “Oppenheimer”
- “Poor Things”
When it comes to film editing, there’s always a unique style to be brought to the screen. How sleek does it have to be? What is the emotion that needs to be conveyed via the arrangement of the footage?
All these films achieve so much via their edits. Again, this is tricky. “Oppenheimer”, once again has all signs pointed to it as it achieves so much tension and drama through the way it’s stitched together.
COSTUME DESIGN
- “Barbie”
- “Killers of The Flower Moon”
- “Napoleon”
- “Oppenheimer”
- “Poor Things”
What is one movie in here that was sold on its costumes? That’s right. “Barbie”!
The vivid wardrobe of Margot Robbie and co is simply iconic. From the pink dress to the outfit with roller skates, and Ken’s mojo dojo mink coat. We think that this has the best chance of winning the trophy in this category.
PRODUCTION DESIGN
- “Barbie”
- “Killers of the Flower Moon”
- “Napoleon”
- “Oppenheimer”
- “Poor Things”
We also have a feeling that this will end up in the plastic hands of “Barbie”. The vivid land that the crew created is just so tangible and lived in because of how thoughtfully they designed every piece. Take a look at the BTS footage. It’s simply phenomenal!
That and because the set of “Barbie” used up so much pink paint it caused a worldwide shortage of that one shade of pink!
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
- “American Fiction”
- “Barbie”
- “Oppenheimer”
- “Poor Things”
- “The Zone of Interest”
It seems like our picks have “Oppenheimer” sweeping awards left and right. But again, it’s the math that matters. So, this time we’re going to try to go against the favourite, “Oppenheimer” and instead look at “Barbie” or “American Fiction”. Both have won other choice awards. Yet, we think that “American Fiction” stands a chance at clinching this one.
INTERNATIONAL FEATURE
- Germany, “The Teachers’ Lounge”
- Italy, “Io Capitano”
- Japan, “Perfect Days”
- Spain, “Society of the Snow”
- United Kingdom, “The Zone of Interest”
Seeing “Anatomy of a Fall” has magically been omitted from this list, it’s generally up in the air for now. We do think that it’s going to J.A. Bayona’s “Society of the Snow”, which was a fantastic, harrowing look at humanity, or “The Zone of Interest” which did well in preliminary circuits, especially at Cannes, where it won the Grand Prix.
Oof, this is hard, but we’ll go with our gut and say… “The Zone of Interest” because it also has several other nominations in this edition, including “Best Picture”. It doesn’t feel like the best deduction we have but we’ll take it anyway.
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
- “Anatomy of a Fall”
- “The Holdovers”
- “Maestro”
- “May December”
- “Past Lives”
Of these nominees, “May December” has the least chance of winning. Look at the amount of nominations it received this year. One.
Despite that, it should be a race between “The Holdovers” and “Anatomy of a Fall”. We think this will go to “The Holdovers” although having a “Past Lives” win would very much be a welcome surprise.
ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
- Emily Blunt, “Oppenheimer”
- Danielle Brooks, “The Color Purple”
- America Ferrera, “Barbie”
- Jodie Foster, “Nyad”
- Da’Vine Joy Randolph, “The Holdovers”
Joining the club of first-time nominees are Emily Blunt, America Ferrera, Da’ Vine Joy Randolph, and Danielle Brooks.
To address the elephant in the room, we think that America Ferrera’s inclusion in here is rather strange. Sure, her monologue was powerful enough in “Barbie” but that does not mean that this can win her the Oscar. As of now, she is at the bottom of the chain here.
There are two standouts. The first is Emily Blunt’s Kitty in “Oppenheimer”. The second is Da’Vine Joy Randolph in “The Holdovers”. Emily Blunt was given early buzz for her fierce performance and rightfully so. She was a force, keeping the title character and even other names at bay.
However, we cannot discount the fact that Da’Vine killed it on screen for her gentle and emotional role in “The Holdovers” and has been sweeping the awards this season. Therefore, we’d say that Emily Blunt is the underdog here and if she wins, that would be the upset.
ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
- Sterling K. Brown, “American Fiction”
- Mark Ruffalo, “Poor Things”
- Robert de Niro, “Killers of the Flower Moon”
- Robert Downey Jr., “Oppenheimer”
- Ryan Gosling, “Barbie”
This is the first time since 2009 that Robert Downey Jr. got nominated for an Oscar for “Tropic Thunder”. His turn as the calculative Louis Strauss was some of the finest acting of 2023 and while the rest on this list are equally good, it is Robert who has kept the momentum going with his wins in the other awards.
Of course, we can’t shut out Mark Ruffalo’s joyful turn as the bad dude in “Poor Things” as well as the command that Robert de Niro had in “Killers of the Flower Moon”. These are two who have the most potential to cause an upset, but for now, we think Robert has clinched it.
ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
- Annette Bening – “Nyad”
- Lily Gladstone, “Killers of the Flower Moon”
- Carey Mulligan, “Maestro”
- Sandra Hüller, ”Anatomy of A Fall”
- Emma Stone, “Poor Things”
We’re a little surprised that Margot Robbie didn’t make this list for her turn in “Barbie”. Nevertheless, looking at this lineup, it does make a lot of sense too as these actresses are some heavy hitters. These performers must be the central figure when it comes to what the movie is trying to convey and we think that, yes these are indeed the best of the best for 2023.
When it comes to the race itself, we can say that the favourite is Lily Gladstone in “Killers of The Flower Moon”. There might be a little scrutiny about her role as some might say that she’s more of a supporting participant in Martin Scorsese’s script but we beg to differ. The relationship she portrays with Leo DiCaprio’s Ernest Burkhart is the emotional pivot of this tragic plot and her command is the highlight of this film.
Sandra Hüller is impressive in the main role as well, playing a distraught character, who is grasping for her innocence in a crime she may or may not have committed. Annette Bening’s portrayal of Diana Nyad is equally committed and wrenching as does Carey Mulligan in “Maestro”, who plays Bradley Cooper so well.
Now, Emma Stone in “Poor Things” might also end up causing an upset as proven by her win at the Critics Choice Awards, and we wouldn’t discount her innocent performance as a young juvenile in an elder’s body. Emma’s one of the most consistent and best-working actors today, and we wouldn’t be surprised if it goes to her.
ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
- Bradley Cooper, “Maestro”
- Colman Domingo, ”Rustin”
- Paul Giamatti, “The Holdovers”
- Cillian Murphy, “Oppenheimer”
- Jeffrey Wright, “American Fiction”
Three of the actors on this list are first-time nominees as Cillian Murphy, Jeffrey Wright, and Colman Domingo all pick up nods for their respective movies. However, Jeffrey Wright and Colman Domingo would seem to be out of the race for now as Cillian Murphy and Paul Giamatti battle it out with an early buzz.
Paul Giamatti was indeed fantastic in “The Holdovers” as a reluctant guardian to his student. Nevertheless, our money is being saved for Cillian Murphy here.
With “Oppenheimer”, Cillian has been turning heads due to his beautiful blue eyes, perfectly projecting his 1940s self into the portrayal of Robert J. Oppenheimer. In all seriousness, this is his best work to date, as he expertly conveys the moral ambiguity of the project, the tension, the lies, and the dramatic flair that comes with building a massive bomb.
DIRECTOR
- Justine Triet, “Anatomy of A Fall”
- Yorgos Lanthimos, “Poor Things”
- Martin Scorsese, “Killers of The Flower Moon”
- Christopher Nolan, “Oppenheimer”
- Jonathan Glazer, “The Zone of Interest”
It’s high time Christopher Nolan gets that trophy. “Oppenheimer” is certainly one of the best pieces of cinema in 2023 and it is due to Nolan’s beautiful vision. There is no doubt that the other directors all did amazing but this one time, it’s Christopher Nolan.
BEST PICTURE
- “American Fiction”
- “Anatomy of A Fall”
- “Barbie”
- “The Holdovers”
- “Killers of The Flower Moon”
- “Maestro”
- “Oppenheimer”
- “Past Lives”
- “Poor Things”
- “The Zone of Interest”
Ooh, this is tough. As always Best Picture nominations can be tricky as the Academy has been known to pull out their magic rabbits out of nowhere. Why do we say this? Back in 2019, no one expected that the Mahershala Ali-led “Green Book” would win. The same goes for 2022’s edition, where “CODA” won.
Both of these movies were by no means, the favourites for their respective years. 2019 saw “Bohemian Rhapsody”, “A Star Is Born”, “The Favourite”, “Roma”, and even “Black Panther” battle it out for the prize. Similarly, two years back, we had “Dune”, “West Side Story”, “The Power of The Dog”, and “Licorice Pizza”.
Right now, the math points toward “Oppenheimer” being the victor in this category. Not only did it take the Golden Globe, it’s also swept up the Critics Choice award, and might continue to find success with the upcoming awards.
Let’s eliminate the movies that are most unlikely to win. These are “Maestro”, “Barbie”, “Poor Things” and “The Zone of Interest” because let’s face it… The Academy likes safe, popular choices and these might cause scrutiny or division among viewers.
Although we loved “Past Lives”, the odds for it aren’t the best. Ultimately, we think that “Killers of the Flower Moon” and “The Holdovers” could take the spot. If anything, “The Holdovers”, is also a very safe bet as it touching, heartwarming well-acted drama without controversy.
As such, we are going to say that yes, this year, the Oscars are going against the grain, and “The Holdovers” wins best picture.
The 96th edition of the Academy Awards will be aired on 10th March at 4.00 pm PT (9.00 am MYT).
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