2018 Academy Award Picks

4 March 2018

Best Picture

This wasn’t a year where one film really stood out to me. Even as the year went on, I thought it was a pretty weak year. Towards the end of 2017, I got to see a lot of great films but none of them really struck me the way some of my favorites have in the past. My favorite film of the best picture nominees is Get Out but I just don’t see it winning this award. I haven’t seen it but with Shape of Water being nominated for the most awards and the fact that I don’t think it’s going to win anything else, I’ve slotted it in here.

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

Actor in a Leading Role

I haven’t seen Darkest Hour and I get that Gary Oldman was great as Winston Churchill, but I think it would be a travesty if Daniel Day-Lewis didn’t win best actor again. There is a reason he has already won three Oscar’s and he proves it once again that he is the best around.

Timothée 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.

Actress in a Leading Role

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

Actress in a Supporting Role

Mary J. Blige was excellent in Mudbound but Laurie Metcalf’s performance just struck a chord for me, really capturing the essence of that relationship.

Mary J. Blige, Mudbound

Allison Janney, I, Tonya

Lesley Manville, Phantom Thread

Laurie Metcalf, Lady Bird

Octavia Spencer, The Shape of Water

Animated Feature Film

The Boss Baby

The Breadwinner

Coco

Ferdinand

Loving Vincent

Cinematography

Blade Runner 2049

Darkest Hour

Dunkirk

Mudbound

The Shape of Water

Costume Design

Beauty and the Beast

Darkest Hour

Phantom Thread

The Shape of Water

Victoria and Abdul

Directing

I was dumbfounded when I heard P.T. Anderson has never won an Oscar. To me, this is absolutely the best category and they got the nominations perfect. I can’t blame the Academy for choosing any of these five. Anderson, Gerwig, and Peele are my tier 1 for this but you can’t go wrong with del Toro or Nolan.

Paul Thomas Anderson, Phantom Thread

Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird

Guillermo del Toro, The Shape of Water

Christopher Nolan, Dunkirk

Jordan Peele, Get Out

Film Editing

I loved Baby Driver so much and considering the whole movie moves to the music, I really hope it takes this award.

Baby Driver

Dunkirk

I, Tonya

The Shape of Water

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Makeup and Hairstyling

Just based on the trailer, Gary Oldman looks fantastic.

Darkest Hour

Victoria and Abdul

Wonder

Original Score

This was a tough one for me because I loved the Phantom Thread score but ultimately, Dunkirk was heightened by the audio throughout and the score was a large part of that.

Dunkirk

Phantom Thread

The Shape of Water

Star Wars: The Last Jedi

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Original Song

Mighty River,” Mudbound

Mystery of Love,” Call Me By Your Name

Remember Me,” Coco

Stand Up for Something,” Marshall

This Is Me,” The Greatest Showman

Production Design

Beauty and the Beast

Blade Runner 2049

Darkest Hour

Dunkirk

The Shape of Water

Sound Editing

I already spoke to the score, but to me Dunkirk should also win both Sound Editing and Sound Mixing for the whole experience.

Baby Driver

Blade Runner 2049

Dunkirk

The Shape of Water

Star Wars: The Last Jedi

Sound Mixing

Baby Driver

Blade Runner 2049

Dunkirk

The Shape of Water

Star Wars: The Last Jedi

Visual Effects

Blade Runner 2049

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Kong: Skull Island

Star Wars: The Last Jedi

War for the Planet of the Apes

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

I haven’t seen as much of Aaron Sorkin’s work as I’d like but everything I have seen has always had the best dialogue. You can always tell you are watching a Sorkin film and Molly’s Game is no exception.

Call Me By Your Name

The Disaster Artist

Logan

Molly’s Game

Mudbound

Writing (Original Screenplay)

The Big Sick was my favorite movie of the year. It was a pitch perfect movie to me and the lack of other nominations is a bit disappointing. It’s tough to pick this over Lady Bird and Get Out but ultimately I believe it deserves it the most.

The Big Sick

Get Out

Lady Bird

The Shape of Water

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Actor in a Supporting Role

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


Short Film (Animated)

Short Film (Live Action)

Foreign Language Film

Documentary Feature

Documentary Short Subject


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