Oscars night is right around the corner, my friends. So let’s talk about my final predictions!
The 92nd Academy Awards is this Sunday and for someone like me, this is very much like the Super Bowl event of my entire year so it is a VERY BIG DEAL. Not only that, but 2019 was regarded as one of the best years for films that we’ve had in a while. I watched nearly 130 feature films that were released in 2019, so I feel confident enough to attest to that bold statement. In fact, 8 out of the 9 films that are Oscar-nominated for Best Picture this year made it to my top 20 favorite films of 2019 which is saying A LOT. It has been a great year filled with some of the best movies I have ever seen and it has all come down to this moment.
Because of that, as you can imagine, to say that the competition for this year’s Oscars is stacked would be the understatement of the century. While some of the categories were easy to work with based on the trends that have been going on all awards season long, I had a very hard time predicting for several of the main categories including Best Picture. This year is shaping to be very predictable in terms of the acting categories but as for everything else, it has the potential to either go exactly as planned OR pull off huge upsets (which can be both good or bad!). Nonetheless, the anticipation is still very exciting and usually, it is the unexpected winners that make the Oscars night much more memorable and worth talking about (again, which can be both good or bad!).
When it comes to predicting, it helps if you look at the nominees/winners of the other award shows such as the Golden Globes, the Critics’ Choice, the Guild Awards for Directors/Producers/Screen Actors/Writers, etc., and so on. Based on what films won in their respective category, this will give you a better idea of who may be taking the same award at the Oscars. This is the strategy I took when making my predictions and I gotta say – this year’s Oscars is going to be a VERY interesting one!
(For the purpose of this article, I won’t go too much into depth about these other awards but if this is something that interests you, I highly recommend checking out the Awards Watch website which breaks down every Academy Award and their nominees with the likelihood of their chances of winning based on the other film awards shows.)
In preparation, I was able to watch every nominee (including short films) except for the following feature films – Corpus Christi, Breakthrough, and Maleficent: Mistress of Evil. What I am hoping for is that Parasite, being one of the frontrunners of the season, will win big and maybe even make history since no international film has ever won Best Picture. That said, I will also be content if 1917 sweeps the majority of the awards (especially the technical ones) since it was also one of my favorite films of 2019. Some of my other wish list items would be for Greta Gerwig to win Best Adapted Screenplay for her work in Little Women since she was snubbed in the Best Director category (sigh don’t even get me started…) and lastly, I know the chances of this happening are like 0.0001% but I would genuinely FREAK OUT if Adam Driver pulls a major upset over Joaquin Phoenix in the Best Actor category.
And now, here are my final predictions for the 92nd Academy Awards:
Best Picture
Ford v Ferrari
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Little Women
Marriage Story
1917
Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Parasite
Who should win: Parasite
Who will win: 1917
Spoiler: Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood or Jojo Rabbit
Best Director
Martin Scorsese, The Irishman
Todd Phillips, Joker
Sam Mendes, 1917
Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Bong Joon Ho, Parasite
Who should win: Bong Joon Ho, Parasite
Who will win: Sam Mendes, 1917
Best Actor
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
Who should win: Adam Driver, Marriage Story
Who will win: Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
Best Actress
Cynthia Erivo, Harriet
Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story
Saoirse Ronan, Little Women
Charlize Theron, Bombshell
Renée Zellweger, Judy
Who should win: Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story
Who will win: Renée Zellweger, Judy
Best Supporting Actor
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
Who should win: Brad Pitt, Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Who will win: Brad Pitt, Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Best Supporting Actress
Kathy Bates, Richard Jewell
Laura Dern, Marriage Story
Scarlett Johansson, Jojo Rabbit
Florence Pugh, Little Women
Margot Robbie, Bombshell
Who should win: Laura Dern, Marriage Story
Who will win: Laura Dern, Marriage Story
Best Adapted Screenplay
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Little Women
The Two Popes
Who should win: Little Women
Who will win: Jojo Rabbit
Best Original Screenplay
Knives Out
Marriage Story
1917
Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Parasite
Who should win: Parasite or Marriage Story
Who will win: Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Best Production Design
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
1917
Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Parasite
Who should win: 1917
Who will win: Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Spoiler: Parasite
Best Cinematography
The Irishman
Joker
The Lighthouse
1917
Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Who should win: 1917
Who will win: 1917
Best Film Editing
Ford v Ferrari
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Parasite
Who should win: Parasite
Who will win: Ford v Ferrari
Spoiler: The Irishman
Best Costume Design
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Little Women
Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Who should win: Little Women
Who will win: Little Women
Spoiler: Jojo Rabbit or Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Best Visual Effects
Avengers: Endgame
The Irishman
The Lion King
1917
Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker
Who should win: 1917
Who will win: 1917
Spoiler: The Irishman or Avengers: Endgame
Best Makeup + Hairstyling
Bombshell
Joker
Judy
Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil
1917
Who should win: Bombshell
Who will win: Bombshell
Spoiler: Judy
Best Sound Mixing
Ad Astra
Ford v Ferrari
Joker
1917
Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Who should win: 1917
Who will win: 1917
Spoiler: Ford v Ferrari
Best Sound Editing
Ford v Ferrari
Joker
1917
Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker
Who should win: 1917
Who will win: 1917
Spoiler: Ford v Ferrari
Best Original Score
Joker
Little Women
Marriage Story
1917
Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker
Who should win: Joker
Who will win: Joker
Spoiler: 1917
Best Original Song
“I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away”, Toy Story 4
“(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again”, Rocketman
“I’m Standing With You”, Breakthrough
“Into The Unknown”, Frozen II
“Stand Up”, Harriet
Who should win: “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again”, Rocketman
Who will win: “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again”, Rocketman
Spoiler: “Stand Up”, Harriet
Best International Film
Corpus Christi
Honeyland
Les Misérables
Pain And Glory
Parasite
Who should win: Parasite
Who will win: Parasite
Best Animated Feature Film
How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
I Lost My Body
Klaus
Missing Link
Toy Story 4
Who should win: Klaus
Who will win: Klaus
Spoiler: Toy Story 4
Best Documentary (Feature)
American Factory
The Cave
The Edge of Democracy
For Sama
Honeyland
Who should win: For Sama
Who will win: American Factory
Best 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
Who should win: Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re A Girl)
Who will win: Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re A Girl)
Best Animated Short Film
Dcera (Daughter)
Hair Love
Kitbull
Memorable
Sister
Who should win: Hair Love or Kitbull
Who will win: Hair Love
Best Live Action Short Film
Brotherhood
Nefta Football Club
The Neighbors’ Window
Saria
A Sister
Who should win: The Neighbors’ Window
Who will win: The Neighbors’ Window
Spoiler: Brotherhood
probably at the movies.
