Don’t we all just love the Oscars? It’s an evening of maniacal celebration, of gratuitous back-patting, of cringe-worthy speech-making and of hosts trying to grasp the latest social trend – I’m looking at you, selfie Ellen. The folks over in Hollywood might “really like” Sally Field, but they’re not quite as fond of Selma or Nightcrawler, and goodness knows how fond they are of American Sniper (hopefully not as much as many fear).
All joking aside, Academy Awards night is a big one for the film industry. The movies nominated are, for the most part, pretty damn good too and should be heralded on a grand stage. Tonight’s ceremony is looking fairly clear-cut in most categories, but there are still a few ambiguities to be sorted.
Better get on with some predictions then. Click on the appropriate film titles for reviews.
Best Picture
– Will win: Boyhood
– Should win: Boyhood
– Should’ve been nominated: Interstellar
Best Director
Alejandro G. Iñárritu (Birdman)
Bennett Miller (Foxcatcher)
Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game)
Richard Linklater (Boyhood)
Wes Anderson (The Grand Budapest Hotel)
– Will win: Alejandro G. Iñárritu
– Should win: Richard Linklater
– Should’ve been nominated: Christopher Nolan (Interstellar), Jeremy Saulnier (Blue Ruin)
Best Actor
Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game)
Bradley Cooper (American Sniper)
Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything)
Michael Keaton (Birdman)
Steve Carell (Foxcatcher)
– Will win: Michael Keaton
– Should win: Eddie Redmayne
– Should’ve been nominated: David Oyelowo (Selma), Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler)
Best Actress
Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything)
Julianne Moore (Still Alice)
Marion Cotillard (Two Days, One Night)
Reese Witherspoon (Wild)
Rosumand Pike (Gone Girl)
– Will win: Julianne Moore
– Should win: Rosamund Pike
– Should’ve been nominated: Emily Blunt (Edge of Tomorrow)
Best Supporting Actor
Edward Norton (Birdman)
Ethan Hawke (Boyhood)
J.K. Simmons (Whiplash)
Mark Ruffalo (Foxcatcher)
Robert Duvall (The Judge)
– Will win: J.K. Simmons
– Should win: J.K. Simmons
– Should’ve been nominated: Channing Tatum (Foxcatcher), Andy Serkis (DotPotA)
Best Supporting Actress
Emma Stone (Birdman)
Keira Knightley (The Imitation Game)
Laura Dern (Wild)
Meryl Streep (Into the Woods)
Patricia Arquette (Boyhood)
– Will win: Patricia Arquette
– Should win: Patricia Arquette
– Should’ve been nominated: Carrie Coon (Gone Girl)
Best Adapted Screenplay
American Sniper
The Imitation Game
Inherent Vice
The Theory of Everything
Whiplash
– Will win: The Imitation Game
– Should win: Whiplash
– Should’ve been nominated: Gone Girl
Best Original Screenplay
Birdman
Boyhood
Foxcatcher
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Nightcrawler
– Will win: Birdman
– Should win: Boyhood
– Should’ve been nominated: Guardians of the Galaxy
Final Thoughts
It looks as though the only real tussle – and it’s a big one – will be between Boyhood and Birdman for Best Picture. They’ll probably split the top award and Best Director between them, though Boyhood and Linklater deserve both.
Michael Keaton might yet nab Best Actor from Eddie Redmayne and despite the bookies favouring the Brit after his BAFTA triumph, I fancy the American to win in the US (cynical me).
As far as the other three acting categories go, Julianne Moore, J.K. Simmons and Patricia Arquette are all shoe-ins. The latter two fully deserve to win. Still Alice still hasn’t hit cinemas over here in the UK therefore I have yet to see Moore’s performance, but I just can’t look past Rosamund Pike’s stunning turn in Gone Girl. Pike should win. She won’t.
The biggest snubs of the year are probably Interstellar and Nightcrawler. David Oyelowo absolutely should be contention for Best Actor (he should probably win it, in truth) but at least Selma has top table nomination. With ten possible slots in the Best Picture category, the dismissal of Interstellar and Nightcrawler is unjustified.
Carrie Coon should feel aggrieved to be missing out on a Best Supporting Actress nomination, as should Channing Tatum in the Best Supporting Actor – or even Best Actor – category. It has been a strong year for the actors to be fair. And a word too for Blue Ruin, one of 2014’s less well-known masterstrokes.
If you’re watching, enjoy the show!
Images credit: Collider, Hollywood Reporter, Indiewire
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