by Brian Surber
As Oscar night approaches here are my choices for who should be on the ballot and who should, ultimately take home the big prize.
Some categories have been left out and some has been added. What a twist!
Best Picture
Dunkirk
Get Out
Lady Bird
The Shape of Water
Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
WINNER:
Get Out
The movie of the year by a mile. Get Out explored what it means to be black and white in 2017 America with impeccable skill. Scary, funny, thrilling, enjoyable, thought-provoking, subtly, textured, layered, light, and so, so fun. What else could one want?
RUNNER-UP:
Lady Bird
Best Director
Greta Gerwig – Lady Bird
Christopher Nolan – Dunkirk
Jordan Peele – Get Out
Guillermo del Toro – The Shape of Water
Edgar Wright – Baby Driver
WINNER:
Christopher Nolan – Dunkirk
The pinnacle of Christopher Nolan’s career. A craftsman at the height of his powers, this is a towering achievement in directing.
RUNNER-UP:
Jordan Peele – Get Out
Best Actor
Timothee Chalamet – Call Me by Your Name
Daniel Day-Lewis – Phantom Thread
Daniel Kaluuya – Get Out
Gary Oldman – Darkest Hour
Robert Pattinson – Good Time
WINNER:
Timothee Chalamet – Call Me by Your Name
RUNNER-UP:
Daniel Kaluuya – Get Out
Best Actress
Sally Hawkins – The Shape of Water
Jennifer Lawrence – mother!
Frances McDormand – Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
Saoirse Ronan – Lady Bird
Daniela Vega – A Fantastic Woman
WINNER:
Sally Hawkins – The Shape of Water
One of the best lineups of acting performance I’ve ever seen, this Best Actress line-up is stacked. And while these are all potential all-timers, my heart belongs to Sally Hawkins. Who shows a bravery hidden in deep rooted sensitivity as Elisa. Without a word she commands the screen as a figure of curiosity filled with love just waiting to be shared.
RUNNER-UP:
Saoirse Ronan – Lady Bird
Best Supporting Actor
Armie Hammer – Call Me by Your Name
Richard Jenkins – The Shape of Water
Jason Mitchell – Mudbound
Rob Morgan – Mudbound
Sam Rockwell – Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
WINNER:
Jason Mitchell – Mudbound
With a performance of breathtaking skill and riveting pain, Jason Mitchell delivers a triumph in Mudbound. Holding the screen with pulsating command in every scene he’s in, he carries the films heart. And his last moments on screen as remarkable as you can see an entire journey finally coming to fruition playing out on his face.
RUNNER-UP:
Sam Rockwell – Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
Best Supporting Actress
Holly Hunter – The Big Sick
Allison Janney – I, Tonya
Vicky Krieps – Phantom Thread
Laurie Metcalf – Lady Bird
Tessa Thompson – Thor: Ragnorak
WINNER:
Laurie Metcalf – Lady Bird
There is nothing unbelievable or misunderstood about Laurie Metcalf’s performance in Lady Bird. She plays a mother who is flawed, who makes poor decisions, and who you can’t always root for. But a mother who carries as strong a love for her child as any you are likely to find. You don’t always agree with her but you can always see where she’s coming from. Subtly as its absolute finest.
RUNNER-UP:
Vicky Krieps – Phantom Thread
Best Original Screenplay
Greta Gerwig – Lady Bird
Emily V. Gordon & Kumail Nanjiani – The Big Sick
Martin McDonagh – Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
Jordan Peele – Get Out
Guillermo del Toro – The Shape of Water
WINNER:
Greta Gerwig – Lady Bird
The one category where the Academy and I agree. This is an all-time list of screenplays. But Greta Gerwig’s screenplay is simply perfection. A beautifully simply script filled with complex characters and ideas. Funny, warm, tender, and fair. It’s a script that feels like it would as fun to read as it was to watch play out on screen.
RUNNER-UP:
Jordan Peele – Get Out
Best Adapted Screenplay
Mark Bomback & Matt Reeves – War for the Planet of the Apes
James Ivory – Call Me by Your Name
Sophia Coppola – The Beguiled
Aaron Sorkin – Molly’s Game
Virgil Williams & Dee Rees – Mudbound
WINNER:
James Ivory – Call Me by Your Name
The tender care that fills James Ivory’s screenplay for Call Me by Your Name earns it this award. Philosophical ideas and tough questions about love are peppered throughout. But this screenplay is about the love and fervor between two men who are brought together if only for a time.
RUNNER-UP:
Virgil Williams & Dee Rees – Mudbound
Best Production Design
Blade Runner 2049
Dunkirk
The Lost City of Z
The Shape of Water
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
WINNER:
The Shape of Water
RUNNER-UP:
Blade Runner 2049
Best Cinematography
Blade Runner 2049
Dunkirk
mother!
Phantom Thread
The Shape of Water
WINNER:
Blade Runner 2049
The master at work. A thing to behold.
RUNNER-UP:
Dunkirk
Best Costume Design
The Beguiled
Blade Runner 2049
I, Tonya
Phantom Thread
Thor: Ragnorak
WINNER:
Phantom Thread
The task of having to design costumes for a film about the greatest designer in Europe gives Phantom Thread points right off the bat. What seals the deal are costumes that feel timeless and illuminate the genius behind a sociopath. The outfits are so beautiful we immediately believe why we cares so very much for them.
RUNNER-UP:
I, Tonya
Best Film Editing
Baby Driver
Dunkirk
Get Out
Lady Bird
mother!
WINNER:
Dunkirk
The genius of Dunkirk‘s editing lies in the fact that its three storylines, while occurring concurrently, are editing completely differently. One moves slowly and steady, one is fast paced and frantic, the last is a building dread. It will be studied in film schools.
RUNNER-UP:
Baby Driver
Best Makeup & Hairstyling
Darkest Hour
I, Tonya
Logan
WINNER:
Darkest Hour
He certainly doesn’t look like Gary Oldman.
RUNNER-UP:
I, Tonya
Best Sound Mixing
Baby Driver
Blade Runner 2049
Dunkirk
mother!
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
WINNER:
Baby Driver
An opera of action, the mixing in Baby Driver was truly something to behold. Bullets, chases, foot steps, all timed perfectly to music. Breathtaking.
RUNNER-UP:
mother!
Best Sound Editing
Baby Driver
Blade Runner 2049
Dunkirk
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
War for the Planet of the Apes
WINNER:
Dunkirk
While I usually can’t resist the sound of a lightsaber, the sound of Dunkirk was imperative to it’s success. Every whiz of a bullet, creak of a ship, or whirl of a plane built tension tremendously.
RUNNER-UP:
War for the Planet of the Apes
Best Visual Effects
Blade Runner 2049
Kong: Skull Island
Thor: Ragnorak
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
War for the Planet of the Apes
WINNER:
War for the Planet of the Apes
If this is to be the finale Apes film then it was one of the finest visual effects trilogies of all time. And War for the Planet of the Apes seals that distinction.
RUNNER-UP:
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Best Original Score
Dunkirk
Phantom Thread
The Shape of Water
Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
War for the Planet of the Apes
WINNER:
The Shape of Water
While the Phantom Thread score is a terrific piece of music but no score this year put me right back into the film than that of The Shape of Water. A beautiful and romantic score that completely evokes the film its filling. Haunting and magical.
RUNNER-UP:
Phantom Thread
Best Original Song
“It Ain’t Fair” – Detroit
“Love and Lies” – Band Aid
“Mystery of Love” – Call Me by Your Name
“Proud Corazon” – Coco
“Remember Me” – Coco
WINNER:
“Remember Me” – Coco
There are specifically two moments in Coco where the song “Remember Me” is sung. I have seen the film twice and each time cried during both of those scenes. A song in Disney’s cannon to be, well, remembered.
RUNNER-UP:
“Mystery of Love” – Call Me by Your Name
Best Vocal/Motion Capture Performance
Michael Cera – The Lego Batman Movie
Anthony Gonzalez – Coco
Andy Serkis – War for the Planet of the Apes
Mark Ruffalo – Thor: Ragnorak
Taika Waititi – Thor: Ragnorak
WINNER:
Andy Serkis – War of the Planet of the Apes
Andy Serkis closes out one of the finest blockbuster performances in cinematic history.
RUNNER-UP:
Taika Waititi – Thor: Ragnorak
Best Performance by an Ensemble Cast
Detroit
Lady Bird
The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected)
Mudbound
Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
WINNER:
Lady Bird
A cast filled with performances that can’t be imagined being performed by other actors. Everyone in Lady Bird scores. Everyone deserves a shout-out. And it’s a credit to them and to Greta Gerwig that they’re given the opportunity.
RUNNER-UP:
Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
Those are the categories with my nominees and my winners. If you have any questions, thoughts, comments, money to give please let me know in the comments below.
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