2017 Oscar Predictions

With Trump turning the world upside down I think we are still a year or two away from deep serious political films sweeping the Academy Awards. The Oscars this year will be political on stage and traditional upbeat with the award wins, these are the last of the Obama movies. This is what I think will win, not what I want to win.

BEST PICTURE- La La Land. The backlash for this film the last month has been odd and unfounded. Ohhh they can't sing, ahhh a white man saved Jazz, geee the story is so simple. La La Land is bold, risky, and the hardest film to make this year. It's a very well made charming throwback musical, and if you feel nothing at the end you are dead inside.
Ignored: Jackie (Get used to this)

BEST ACTOR- Casey Affleck. Nobody beat his performance this year, and only the Gos came close.
Ignored: Colin Farrell-The Lobster.

BEST ACTRESS- Emma Stone. Huppert may steal it from her, but the singing and dancing may give Emma the edge. I'm really rooting for Natalie Portman for Jackie, but that won't happen.
Ignored: Viola Davis-Fences

SUPPORTING ACTRESS- Viola Davis. The Academy needs to get their shit strait and set some rules. Viola is in as much of Fences as Denzel, and now she has an unfair advantage over the other nominees. I'm rooting for Michelle Williams for Manchester, but 90 minutes of screen time beats 10 minutes.
Ignored: Angeliki Papoulia- "The Heartless Women" from The Lobster.

SUPPORTING ACTOR- Mahershala Ali. Great category again this year, but Ali gives a star making performance.
Ignored: I have a few.Ben Whishaw- The Lobster. Trevante Rhodes "The grown up Chiron"-Moonlight. Ben Foster- Hell or High Water

DIRECTING- Damien Chazelle. The guy took a big risk for his second film and hit it out of the park. No sophomore slump for D.C.
Ignored: Pablo Larrain-Jackie and Yorgos Lanthimos- The Lobster

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY- Manchester By The Sea. One of my two La La losses for the night, Lonergan deserves this one.
Ignored: Noah Oppenheim-Jackie. Now this is weird, the guy was a TV producer for The Today Show and some reality programs. Then he decides to become a screenwriter and adapts The Maze Runner and Allegiant, two terrible movies. Then he writes an unconventional script about Jackie Kennedy and Boom! I don't get it.

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY- Moonlight. I was really happy that Manchester and Moonlight didn't have to go against each other. Justice is usually served in the writing categories.
Ignored: Sarah Waters-The Handmaiden

CINEMATOGRAPHY- Linus Sandgren-La La Land.
Ignored: Stephane Fontaine-Jackie. Shot on Super 16 and flawless combination of new and old footage. Jarin Blaschke-The Witch

ANIMATED- Kubo and the Two Strings. Stop motion is just too impressive.

FOREIGN- Toni Erdmann. The last two years I have been really bad at seeing Foreign films. I blame my move from NYC.
Ignored: The Handmaiden

DOCUMENTARY- OJ: Made In America. This is what I'm rooting for the most out of all the films nominated this year. I know one of the editors and the film is phenomenal.
Ignored: DePalma. Just a joy to watch.

EDITING-La La Land
Ignored: Jackie and Manchester By The Sea

SCORE- La La Land.The three best scores the last few years were all nominated. La La, Jackie, and my favorite score Moonlight. I will do a back-flip if Britell wins for Moonlight.
Ignored: David Wingo-Midnight Special

SONG- City Of Stars-La La Land. It's a shame that "The Audition" got nominated over "A Lovely Night" and "Another Day in the Sun". It's a pinnacle song, but it's too long and weak compared to the other two.

SOUND EDITING/MIXING/VISUAL EFFECTS- La La/La La/ Kubo

COSTUME/MAKE UP/PRODUCTION DESIGN- Jackie/Star Trek/La La

DOC SHORT/ANIMATED SHORT/LIVE ACTION SHORT-Joe's Violin/Pearl/Silent Nights.

TOP 10 OF THE YEAR.
1) La La Land
2) Manchester By The Sea
3) Jackie
4) OJ: Made In America
5) Moonlight
6) The Nice Guys
7) The Lobster
8) DePalma
9) Deadpool (Sorry, but this film is fun.)
10) The Handmaiden

It was a terrible year for films until the November rolled around, then it became a really good year.