Happy Oscar Sunday to my fellow cinephiles and casual moviegoers! Tonight is the night we’ve all been waiting for. The 92nd Annual Academy Awards are being televised, without a host this year for the second time. There are plenty of presenters that will be taking the stage and awarding their colleagues for their accomplishments this year.
It has been such a long journey for me, since I attended The Toronto International Film Festival in September and I made my early picks for Oscar Season. Fortunately for me, I made the right choices and majority of them are now nominated this year. Also, fun fact before I make my predictions… for the past couple of years the Grolsch People’s Choice Award winner at TIFF has won an Oscar, in this case Jojo Rabbit has a shot.
So here are my predictions…
BEST PICTURE
SHOULD WIN: Parasite
WILL WIN: 1917
ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Kathy Bates, “Richard Jewell”
Laura Dern, “Marriage Story”
Scarlett Johansson, “Jojo Rabbit”
Florence Pugh, “Little Women”
Margot Robbie, “Bombshell”
SHOULD WIN: Florence Pugh, Little Women
WILL WIN: Laura Dern, Marriage Story
ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Tom Hanks, “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”
Anthony Hopkins, “The Two Popes”
Al Pacino, “The Irishman”
Joe Pesci, “The Irishman”
Brad Pitt, “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood”
SHOULD WIN: Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood
WILL WIN: Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
South Korea, “Parasite”
Spain, “Pain and Glory”
France, “Les Misérables”
North Macedonia, “Honeyland”
Poland, “Corpus Christi”
SHOULD WIN: Parasite
WILL WIN: Parasite
DOCUMENTARY (SHORT)
“In the Absence”
“Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl)”
“Life Overtakes Me”
“St. Louis Superman”
“Walk Run Cha-Cha”
SHOULD WIN: “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl)”
WILL WIN: “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl)”
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
“American Factory”
“The Edge of Democracy”
“Honeyland”
“For Sama”
“The Cave”
SHOULD WIN: For Sama
WILL WIN: American Factory
ORIGINAL SONG
“I’m Standing With You,” “Breakthrough”
“Into the Unknown,” “Frozen II”
“Stand Up,” “Harriet”
“(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again,” “Rocketman”
“I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away,” “Toy Story 4”
SHOULD WIN: “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again,” “Rocketman”
WILL WIN: “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again,” “Rocketman”
ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
“How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World”
“I Lost My Body”
“Klaus”
“Missing Link”
“Toy Story 4”
SHOULD WIN: Klaus/Missing Link
WILL WIN: Toy Story 4
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
SHOULD WIN: Little Women
WILL WIN: Jojo Rabbit
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
SHOULD WIN: Parasite
WILL WIN: Parasite
ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Antonio Banderas, “Pain and Glory”
Leonardo DiCaprio, “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood”
Adam Driver, “Marriage Story”
Joaquin Phoenix, “Joker”
Jonathan Pryce, “The Two Popes”
SHOULD WIN: Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
WILL WIN: Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Cynthia Erivo, “Harriet”
Scarlett Johansson, “Marriage Story”
Saoirse Ronan, “Little Women”
Renée Zellweger, “Judy”
Charlize Theron, “Bombshell”
SHOULD WIN: Saiorse Ronan, Little Women
WILL WIN: Renée Zellweger, Judy
DIRECTOR
Martin Scorsese, “The Irishman”
Quentin Tarantino, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
Bong Joon-ho, “Parasite”
Sam Mendes, “1917”
Todd Phillips, “Joker”
SHOULD WIN: Bong Joon-ho, Parasite
WILL WIN: Sam Mendes, 1917
PRODUCTION DESIGN
SHOULD WIN: Once Upon A Time… in Hollywood
WILL WIN: Parasite
CINEMATOGRAPHY
SHOULD WIN: The Lighthouse
WILL WIN: 1917
COSTUME DESIGN
SHOULD WIN: Little Women
WILL WIN: Jojo Rabbit
SOUND EDITING
SHOULD WIN: 1917
WILL WIN: Ford v Ferrari
SOUND MIXING
SHOULD WIN: 1917
WILL WIN: Ford v Ferrari
ANIMATED SHORT FILM
“Dcera (Daughter)”
“Hair Love”
“Kitbull”
“Memorable”
“Sister”
SHOULD WIN: Hair Love
WILL WIN: Hair Love
LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
“Brotherhood”
“Nefta Football Club”
“The Neighbours’ Window”
“Saria”
“A Sister”
SHOULD WIN: Saria
WILL WIN: Saria
ORIGINAL SCORE
“1917,” Thomas Newman
“Joker,” Hildur Guðnadóttir
“Little Women,” Alexandre Desplat
“Marriage Story,” Randy Newman
“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” John Williams
SHOULD WIN: Hildur Guðnadóttir, Joker
WILL WIN: Hildur Guðnadóttir, Joker
VISUAL EFFECTS
“Avengers: Endgame”
“The Lion King”
SHOULD WIN: 1917
WILL WIN: 1917
FILM EDITING
SHOULD WIN: The Irishman
WILL WIN: Ford v Ferrari
MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
SHOULD WIN: Bombshell
WILL WIN: Bombshell
As you can see there is only one pick for The Irishman. Does The Irishman deserve more than it’s getting this year? You bet! So I’m not voting based on preference, instead I’m voting with how award season went.
Would I want The Irishman, Joker and Once Upon A Time… in Hollywood to over perform and surprise all of us? Yes. Those were the films that stood out to me in 2019.
Would Parasite winning Best Picture be a historic moment that SHOULD happen in 2020? ABSOLUTELY.
There’s no doubt in my mind that the Oscars won’t be filled with surprises tonight! The red carpet starts at 6pm and the telecast starts at 8pm. Feel free to follow along on Twitter @amxndareviews.
Candid Cinema 