Another Oscar season is upon us, and I am looking forward to watching this year’s awards. At this point I believe I am in a small group of individuals that get excited for the Oscars. There are many reasons for this, and I don’t think the Academy can do anything about it. Most casual film goers don’t care about the artistic aspect of film, and the Oscars are about honoring good art. My biggest concern with the Academy and Hollywood in general is the lack of diversity, but I feel like this is slowly getting better. Just like in real life we always get better work when we are more diverse!
As usual I was not prepared. I spent the last few weeks cramming in all the best picture nominees. For me personally I felt like this class of movies was only slightly better than last year’s, and a lot of people thought 2020 was very weak. Most of that was because of the COVID shutdown and I believe that continued to make an impact for film in 2021. With that said I did enjoy all the best picture nominees but I don’t have a clear favorite.
Below are my predictions for this year’s awards. I have provided who I think will win, and who I want to win. I normally do well but I have been way off before. Obviously, the other issue with the Oscars is how political it can get with the winners, so making predictions can be difficult. The only lock I can see this year is Best Supporting Actress, but Best Actor could be as well. I am very excited to see who wins this year!
Best Picture
Who will win: “CODA”
Who I want to win: “CODA”
Best Director
Who will win: Jane Campion, “The Power of the Dog”
Who I want to win: Jane Campion, “The Power of the Dog”
Best Actor
Who will win: Will Smith, “King Richard”
Who I want to win: Will Smith, “King Richard”
Best Actress
Who will win: Jessica Chastain, “The Eyes of Tammy Faye”
Who I want to win: Nicole Kidman, “Being the Ricardos”
Best Supporting Actor
Who will win: Troy Kotsur, “CODA”
Who I want to win: Troy Kotsur, “CODA”
Best Supporting Actress
Who will win: Ariana DeBose, “West Side Story”
Who I want to win: Ariana DeBose, “West Side Story”
Original Screenplay
Who will win: “Licorice Pizza”
Who I want to win: “Belfast”
Adapted Screenplay
Who will win: “CODA”
Who I want to win: “Drive My Car”
Animated Feature
Who will win: “Encanto”
Who I want to win: “Flee”
Production Design
Who will win: “Dune”
Who I want to win: “Dune”
Costume Design
Who will win: “Cruella”
Who I want to win: “Cruella”
Cinematography
Who will win: “Dune”
Who I want to win: “Nightmare Alley”
Editing
Who will win: “Dune”
Who I want to win: “Dune”
Makeup and Hairstyling
Who will win: “The Eyes of Tammy Faye”
Who I want to win: “Cruella”
Sound
Who will win: “Dune”
Who I want to win: “Dune”
Visual Effects
Who will win: “Dune”
Who I want to win: “Dune”
Score
Who will win: Hans Zimmer,“Dune”
Who I want to win: Hans Zimmer,“Dune”
Song
Who will win: “No Time to Die” from No Time to Die — Music and Lyric by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell
Who I want to win: “No Time to Die” from No Time to Die — Music and Lyric by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell
Documentary Feature
Who will win: “Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)”
Who I want to win: “Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)”
International Feature
Who will win: “Drive My Car,” Japan
Who I want to win: “Drive My Car,” Japan
Animated Short
Who will win: “Robin Robin”
Who I want to win: “Robin Robin”
Documentary Short
Who will win: “The Queen of Basketball”
Who I want to win: “The Queen of Basketball”
Live-Action Short
Who will win: “The Long Goodbye”
Who I want to win: “Ala Kachuu — Take and Run”